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Article 1: Explosion kills 42 miners in northern China; 27 missing
Forty-two miners are confirmed dead and 27 are missing, after an explosion at the Xishui Mine in Shuozhou, a city in China's Shanxi province.
Six rescue teams are working at the site to rescue the missing personnel, according to Liu Jiwen, an onsite rescue consultant. Two miners were rescued earlier in the day.
Xishui Mine is licensed to produce 150,000 tons of coal per year. But the mine was ordered closed in 2004 for safety violations.
"In defiance of the order, however, mine owners have restarted production this year," stated a province-level official.
Police have arrested the owners of the Xishui mine.
Zhang Baoshun, the governor of Shanxi province, is on the scene to oversee the rescue work and an investigation of the accident.
Twenty-two other miners were working at the nearby Kangjiayao mine at the time of the accident, although it is unclear if any of those miners were affected.
Thousands of miners die in mining accidents each year in China. Today's accident comes just one day after 19 coal miners were killed in a mining accident in the Sulongsi mine in Chongqing, and one month after the largest accident in recent history killed 214 miners, in Fuxin, Liaoning Province.
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According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Weather Service, much of western Texas and southeastern New Mexico is under a "winter storm warning."
"A winter storm will continue to bring widespread snowfall to much of west Texas and southeastern New Mexico through Sunday morning," said the NOAA in a special weather statement.
Parts of NM could see three to six inches of snow "with isolated areas receiving six to eight inches of snow," added the statement. Some parts of NM have already seen just over a foot of snow with Red River picking up 13 inches.
Western Texas could see three to six inches as well, with some areas picking up a little more. Seminole has reported only two inches of snow so far.
According to AccuWeather, the storm is expected to turn northeast and take a "track taking it west of the Appalachians Sunday night and Monday." | 0 |
Article 1: On November 13, Torontonians will be heading to the polls to vote for their ward's councillor and for mayor. Among Toronto's ridings is Don Valley West (Ward 26). Four candidates responded to Wikinews' requests for an interview. This ward's candidates include Muhammad Alam, Bahar Aminvaziri, Orhan Aybars, Michele Carroll-Smith, Mohamed Dhanani, Abdul Ingar, 'Geoff Kettel', Debbie Lechter, 'Natalie Maniates', John Masterson, 'John Parker', David Thomas, 'Csaba Vegh', and Fred Williams.
For more information on the election, read Toronto municipal election, 2006.
'Q:' Describe the three most important issues in your campaign.
: 'A:' Describe the three most important issues in your campaign.
:* Development in residential areas in Leaside and Bennington and Wynford/ Concorde
:* Public safety, tenant issues and property standards in Thorncliffe Park and Flemingdon Park
:* Future use of the Leaside industrial area
: For other issues please go to the web site www.geoffkettel.ca
'Q:' What one election issue do you feel is most relevant to your ward in this election?
: 'A:' The need to engage all communities and ensure fair representation of the whole ward. I will work with the community to build a city that is safe, green and healthy, and responsibly manage the City's finances
'Q:' Why have you chosen to involve yourself in the political process?
: 'A:' I want to build a city that is safe, green and healthy and to responsibly manage the city's finances.
: The municipal councillor is in a unique position to effect positive change due to working at the order of government that is the closest to the citizens
: I am qualified for the job having 25 years of community service in Ward 26 and 30 years of public service in the Ontario government. My record of community service includes being:
: Chair of the East York Board of Health and champion of the East York smoke free bylaws;
: Chair of a not for profit housing corporation which created 120 units of seniors housing in Leaside so folks could stay in the community they love;
: Chair of the Jenner Jean-Marie community centre in Thorncliffe Park and champion for its recently announced expansion to meet the needs of a growing community.
: And in public service my record includes being Chief Financial Officer for Ontairo public health responsible for a $1 billion budget
'Q:' Why do you want to represent this particular ward on council?
: 'A:' In my view it is essential that the councillor live in the Ward they represent. I have lived in the Ward for 25 years. As a result of living in and being involved in the community I am very knowledgeable about the Ward, its history, geography and economy etc.
'Q:' How are you currently involved in the community?
: 'A:' I have lived in the Ward for 25 years, and with my wife we have raised our 3 children who attended local schools. In addition to being involved as a parent and community member in such areas as home and school association, school council, and church committees, I have taken on wider community leadership roles.
: Most recently I was chair of the Advisory Committee for the Jenner Jean-Marie Community Centre in Thorncliffe Park until September 2006 (chair for 6 years). I am former Chair of the East York Board of Health for 4 years (and active member for another 8 years) and former Chair of Stay at Home in Leaside (SAHIL) a not for profit community-based organization that built 120 units of seniors housing in Leaside.
: In addition I am on a leave of absence from my position with Ontario Public Health effective September 4, 2006. I was formerly senior manager with a budget of $1 billion in health care.
'Q:' What does Toronto mean to you?
: 'A:' Toronto used to be known as "New York built by the Swiss". I would like to have a role in returning Toronto to being "the city the world wants to visit" because it fulfills its destiny as a diverse city that works for all its residents and visitors.
'Q:' Which council decision (since the 2003 election) do you feel the city/your ward should be most proud of, and which was least desirable?
: 'A:' The new Official Plan encourages intensification and increasing density, at the same time the plan gives more authority to neighbourhoods to protect and retain their character. Least desirable – the failure of council to make significant progress on its plan to become a less auto-dependent city (e.g. by approving bicycle lanes – this year only 1 km approved).
Mr. Kettel abstained from the question "If you were elected as a "rookie" councillor, What would you bring to the table beyond the incumbent?", as incumbent Jane Pitfield is running for mayor, "and as such I believe it is inappropriate to respond to this question".
'Q:' Describe the three most important issues in your campaign.
: 'A:'
: 'Zero tolerance for urban decay':
:* Consistent and efficient services to ensure graffiti eradication, lighting, street cleaning, parks maintenance, and beautification.
:* The maintenance of Toronto City Housing in Flemingdon Park must be restored to a state of good and safe repair.
: 'Safe communities that encourage residents to keep active'
:* Toronto must ensure a safe community environment that gives residents peace of mind in their daily life activities.
:* I propose the city introduce a system of location markers in our ravine and parks to provide residents with a feeling of safety and security as they enjoy our parks. This will also reduce response time of emergency services responding to 911 calls in our parks and ravines.
: 'Responsible development for our neighbourhoods'
:* I would advocate for a mandatory architectural peer review council to promote consistent and well planned development. This would enhance the public realm with respect to green space, size and height, density, and public access ultimately benefiting Toronto's communities.
:* A thorough and guaranteed public consultation process with local residents for any large scale development proposal. The recent surge of new buildings in the Bayview Institutional area could bring further development and we must ensure that the confines of any original agreement and framework are adhered to.
'Q:' What one election issue do you feel is most relevant to your ward in this election?
: 'A:' Protecting the strong sense of community Ward 26 is the most important issue the must be addressed. Traffic and development are converging forces in our community that have an impact on the sense of neighbourhood spirit . The city must arrive at well planned decisions through a thoughtful and efficient process that accommodates residents' concerns.
'Q:' Why have you chosen to involve yourself in the political process?
: 'A:' I have always had respect for Canada's political process. The municipal level symbolizes grassroots politics and I enjoy having that direct contact and support of my neighbours. I decided to involve myself because it is time that younger Canadians entered our political realm to make that difference and encourage our demographic to vote and have their voices heard. I am confident that I can bring a FIT – Forward, Innovative, Thinking approach to city hall in order to bring sustainable solutions to Toronto over the next twenty years.
'Q:' Why do you want to represent this particular ward on council?
: 'A:' Growing up and living in our community all my life has shaped my values and given me a sense of pride for where I live. I am proud of how Don Valley West has evolved but still feel that there is more work to be done. I understand the traditions of my neighbourhood and also identify with the new generation of residents who have chosen Ward 26 as their home. I want the City of Toronto to take responsibility to ensure a safe, healthy, and active community for residents of all ages.
'Q:' How are you currently involved in the community?
: 'A:' Coaching the Rumsey Rattlers children's basketball at Bloorview Kids Rehab. Fundraising for the Starlight Starbright Children's Foundation and the Toronto Child Abuse Centre over the past three years.
'Q:' Which council decision (since the 2003 election) do you feel the city/your ward should be most proud of, and which was least desirable?
: 'A:' Most desirable: The City's commitment of sustained support of the Career Bridge program that helps foreign trained professionals get their first Canadian job experience. Toronto was responsible for employing new immigrants in the City of Toronto workforce and set an example to employers across our City as to how we can tap in to such valuable expertise that is right at our doorstep.
: Least Desirable: The purchase of the Green Lane landfill site without lengthy consultation or discussion with the entire City Council. The City must start investigating proposals for alternative methods of waste management that could prove to be more sustainable such as incineration.
'Q:' If you were elected as a "rookie" councillor, What would you bring to the table beyond the incumbent?
: 'A:' The FIT approach - Forward, Innovative Thinking. I am forward with a fresh start and futuristic outlook, innovative with beyond the box ideas, and thinking, as a natural communicator with a multitude of experience dealing with a variety of stakeholders. Coming to City Hall with no political baggage and such experience would position me well to become a consensus builder not just within council, but with both the federal and provincial levels of government.
'Q:' What does Toronto mean to you?
: 'A:' Toronto has enormous potential that has not been tapped in to yet. I would like to see Toronto become a world class city that embraces zero tolerance for urban decay, Safe communities that encourage residents to keep active, responsible development for our neighbourhood, and most of all, accountability to it's taxpayers.
'Q:' Describe the three most important issues in your campaign.
: 'A:' Get the budget under control; achieve value for money in City Hall spending; protect our neighbourhoods.
'Q:'What one election issue do you feel is most relevant to your ward in this election?
: 'A:' Protect our neighbourhoods.
'Q:' Why have you chosen to involve yourself in the political process?
: 'A:' I am concerned that Toronto is falling far short of its potential due only to lack of committed responsible leadership. I want to help change that.
'Q:' Why do you want to represent this particular ward on council?
: 'A:' Ward 26 has been my home all my adult life.
'Q:' How are you currently involved in the community?
: 'A:' Over the past several years I have served in many capacities of local, provincial, and national scope. This involvement has ranged from consulting to the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment to coaching pee-wee hockey.
'Q:' What does Toronto mean to you?
: 'A:' Toronto has always been my home. I always assumed it to be the best city in North America. I feel it is starting to slip. I want to get it back on track to where I think it belongs as the best city on this continent in which to to live, work, and raise a family.
'Q:' Which council decision (since the 2003 election) do you feel the city/your ward should be most proud of, and which was least desirable?
: 'A:' Not much to be proud of. Outraged at secret vote to try to slip a pay raise past the voters. Seriously disappointed at decision to commit $500M to buy a hole in the ground as another temporary solution to the issue of waste management.
'Q:' If you were elected as a "rookie" councillor, What would you bring to the table beyond the incumbent?
: 'A:' I would bring a determination always to keep an eye on long range goals and needs while focusing on achievable, immediate priorities, and not mortgage the future to finance a response to immediate short term political pressures.
'Q:' Describe the three most important issues in your campaign.
: 'A:' Property taxes, crime and traffic are three hot topic issues. I believe that homeowners and businesses are being over taxed. Generation of revenue is not a problem for the city, the way we spend taxpayers money needs to be re-evaluated. We need to hire more police officers and we need to give them the resources to do their job effectively. I believe that a city the size of Toronto should have at least one regularly operating police helicopter. We can also address youth crime by giving our youth the opportunity to spend their time in healthful and productive ways. I have suggested that the city should work with the school boards to open high school gyms to their student for after school activities. Currently, a lot of school gyms are closed to students after school due to a lack of qualified supervisors. Finally, infiltration of traffic onto the streets of Leaside have incresed sic drastically over the past few years. I suggest reducing vehicular access to the streets of Leaside during peak hours for non-residents or their visitors. I also support the construction of the Redway Rd. extension to ease traffic flow.
'Q:' What one election issue do you feel is most relevant to your ward in this election?
: 'A:' As I mentioned before, I believe that that property taxes for homeowners and businesses need to be frozen. We are being over taxed.
'Q:' Why have you chosen to involve yourself in the political process?
: 'A:' I have lived in ward 26 for thirty years. I have also attended school here, worked here, and I have been a volunteer football coach at Leaside High School since 1989. I believe that I can be a strong and effective voice for our community at City Hall without partisan influence because I am not a member of any political party.
'Q:' Why do you want to represent this particular ward on council?
: 'A:' I have deep roots in the community. Being a long time resident, I share the views and concerns of quite a number of the residents of Ward 26.
'Q:' How are you currently involved in the community?
: 'A:' I have been a volunteer football coach at Leaside High School since 1989. I am also a volunteer with the Scarborough Minor Football Association. And, I have been a volunteer coach for the Leaside Hockey Association.
'Q:' What does Toronto mean to you?
: 'A:' Toronto is a city of diversity, multiculturalism and acceptance. And with giving our police force the tools to do their jobs effectively, I would strive to make Toronto's streets the safest in Canada.
'Q:' Which council decision (since the 2003 election) do you feel the city/your ward should be most proud of, and which was least desirable?
: 'A:' Being an effective councillor requires the ability to work with a varied group of individuals to work as one unit to make decisions that affect millions of people daily. Through my volunteer efforts, I have worked with teams for many years, where bringing individual achievements into one cohesive unit are absolutely necessary to succeed. I will bring this experience to the table at City Hall.
'Q:' If you were elected as a "rookie" councillor, What would you bring to the table beyond the incumbent?
: 'A:' In my opinion, Councillor Jane Pitfield has done a great job for ward 26. I would hope to continue this strong representation with a non-partisan perspective. Article 2: On November 13, Toronto residents will be heading to the polls to vote for their ward's councillor and for mayor. Among Toronto's ridings is Toronto Centre (Ward 28). One candidate responded to Wikinews' requests for an interview. This ward's candidates include Edward Chin, Paula Fletcher (incumbent), 'Patrick Kraemer', Suzanne McCormick, 'Daniel Nicastro', and Michael Zubiak.
For more information on the election, read Toronto municipal election, 2006.
'Q:' Describe the three most important issues in your campaign.
: 'A:' Energy, Crime and Poverty are the main planks of my platform and the most serious issues facing Ward 30.
: The province is moving ahead with a new gas fired electricity generating plant in the Portlands adjacent to the beaches of Lake Ontario. The provincial Liberals were elected on promises of moving away from our highly polluting coal plants to renewable energies. The Portlands Energy Centre is another broken promise of this provincial government.
: And the City could be doing so much more on this front. As Councilor I will fight for a comprehensive and aggressive energy conservation program. Energy conservation will achieve these goals much quicker than the construction of new facilities. Further, I will push for the construction of renewable energy sources such as windmills to fill the energy demands of the City. These proposals will create a competitive and sustainable economy for the City, will reduce pollution and our contribution to green house gases and will prevent the need to create more energy polluting sources such as the provincial plan of the Portlands Energy Centre.
: Crime is another important issue for the City of Toronto and of concern for the residents of Ward 30. Many people are concerned about the incidents of guns, violent crimes and physical assaults. We have one of the safest cities in North America yet people still feel vulnerable when these things happen in our own community.
: We don't need more police officers, we need to work together to make our communities safe and to feel safe in our communities. I will push to have more police officers out of their cars and to have them walking and biking on the streets in our neighbourhoods. Police also need to be involved in community and business associations, our schools and at neighbourhood functions and facilities. We also need to invest in technology and training to combat the organization and incidents of crime. Finally, we need to create opportunities for citizens to participate more fully in community awareness programs, to become educated about crime in the community and create avenues to report crime and criminal behaviour. We need to take ownership of our neighbourhoods and make them safe.
: Poverty – its sources and consequences, is a serious issue for Toronto. There are hundreds of thousands of Torontonians that are currently unemployed. Not only is this a loss of much productive power in our city, it has devastating impacts on individuals and families and pushes many people into poverty, homelessness and subject to numerous social stressors. Homelessness is also a product of low welfare payments, lack of affordable housing and inadequate medical and psychiatric services. These are just a few of the issues related to poverty and as City Councilor I will advocate unequivocally for the cause of eradicating poverty and the effects of poverty.
'Q:' What one election issue do you feel is most relevant to your ward in this election?
: Energy and conservation. Not only does the Portlands Energy project in Ward 30 need to be halted, the City has the opportunity to become a leader in addressing energy usage and emissions of green house gases. I am a proponent of achieving our energy goals through an aggressive energy conservation program using incentives, tax policy and other tools to achieve it. Ward 30 could be the leader in this area rather than being the Ward that could becomes the highest new green house gas emitter in 2007.
'Q:' Why have you chosen to involve yourself in the political process?
: 'A:' I believe I have the experience, education and desire to provide the leadership needed in the role of Councilor. I have always had a keen interest in politics and have taken many opportunities to be involved in various groups/boards/initiatives to help make a positive difference in our society. Toronto City Council is in need of leadership and I pledge to serve in this capacity to push forward a progressive agenda of change.
'Q:' Why do you want to represent this particular ward on council?
: 'A:' This is where I live and where my wife and I are raising our family. We have a self interest in making this a better place. I want to help make our community better for the many friends, businesses, cultural activities, recreational facilities and neighbourhoods that are a part of this vibrant and energetic Ward.
'Q:' How are you currently involved in the community?
: 'A:' I am actively involved with Pro Bono Law Ontario having offered free legal advice to such groups as Somali Canadian Association and Television for the Environment. I am a member of Legal Aid of Ontario offering legal services to people who would otherwise not be able to afford it. I have been involved in several community gardens. I have been a member of the Toronto Choral Society, am a regular aphaeresis donor with Canadian Blood Services and have helped raise money for numerous charities including Toronto's Daily Bread Food Bank.
'Q:' Which council decision (since the 2003 election) do you feel the city/your ward should be most proud of, and which was least desirable?
: 'A:' The cancellation of a fixed link to the Toronto Island Airport was a positive step toward preventing a more active airport and a major air and noise polluter on the waterfront and in the downtown. Ward 30 and all residents of Toronto will benefit from not having this airport.
: The most detestable decision since the 2003 election was the bylaw passed at the insistence of Mayor Miller to prohibit homeless from sleeping or congregating in Nathan Phillips Square. Poverty and homelessness will not be eradicated by making them invisible to the law makers at City Hall.
'Q:' If you were elected as a "rookie" councillor, what would you bring to the table beyond the incumbent?
: 'A:' I am a resident of Ward 30 and have an intimate knowledge and self-interest in making it a better place.
: I am not affiliated with any political party, and this would provide me the ability to stand up for my ward each time there is a vote on any given issue. Many councilors are aligned with a political party, and will vote to support motions that their party supports, even when it is not in the best interest of the ward they represent.
: I bring a unique set of skills and experience to this role. I am enthusiastic, committed and have a strong desire to make our City a better place.
'Q:' What does Toronto mean to you?
: 'A:' Toronto is diverse, vibrant and full of energy. It represents hope, opportunity and excellence. It has the potential to be even greater, to be a leader in Canada and the world. There are so many challenges that need to be addressed that we must take the opportunity to do something about it. We have the knowledge, technology and resources to achieve so much. I believe in Toronto and believe we can play an even stronger leadership role.
'Q:' Describe the three most important issues in your campaign.
: 'A:'
: 1) Revitalising Commerce on the Danforth Jones going East ; Inventory of housing stock for state of maintenance, for illegal buildings and use, for rentals, for absent landlords, for compliance to density per bedroom, for historically significant properties and/or districts, identifying and developing areas that can generate local employment
: 2) Having the grassroots participate in the governance of the city through a system of neighbourhood townhalls and participation in the future of the Portlands asking for transparency and participation in the decision making and spending process.
: 3) Improving TTC service, including a surface bus service Broadview to Main Street, Subway stops are too far apart for the elderly and non motorised handicapped, general rationalisation of parking and parking enforcement.
'Q:' What one election issue do you feel is most relevant to your ward in this election?
: 'A:' The Portlands
'Q:' Why have you chosen to involve yourself in the political process?
: 'A:' Because I am tired of the present arrogance at City Hall and would like to separate Party Politiccs from City Governance and alliances that do not represent the agenda of the grassroot.
'Q:' Why do you want to represent this particular ward on council?
: 'A:' I grew up in it, I know it well, I can see its potential and its abandonment in certain areas, I like the multicultural mix and would like to welcome and integrate the new ethnic groups that are coming in and fostering commerce, like the Ethiopian, the Africans and those already here expanding local festivals and cultural events district by district
'Q:' How are you currently involved in the community?
: 'A:' Sponsoring refugees, helping informally resettlement of immigrants, giving English classes etc.
'Q:' Which council decision (since the 2003 election) do you feel the city/your ward should be most proud of, and which was least desirable?
: 'A:' Increasing taxes was contreversials, insisting in chasing dreams like the Olympics or a World fair are chimeras. We should concentrate in bringing back quality to city life and maintenance, concentrating on the potential for tourism our ethnic mix can bring (see Caribana etc.) and then we will become our own distinct World Class City.
'Q:' If you were elected as a "rookie" councillor, What would you bring to the table beyond the incumbent?
: 'A:' A real connection with the electorate. Humbleness as their representative. Consultation and discussions before voting for controversial City Programmes and Issues. A return to and improvement to saving our local heritage including Historical Buildings (see Riverdale hospital) and control over the planning process to control condominium/highrise expansion in Ward 30 in particular. Transparency for the Portland and Waterfront projects. A cricket pitch in the Portlands or Riverdale park to reflect our cultural mix in sports as well.
Mr. Nicastro did not respond to the question "What does Toronto mean to you?" | 1 |
Article 1: The common brown rat
Canadian authorities report that a Chinese restaurant in the Chinatown area of Toronto has been closed down by the Board of Public Health for the second time yesterday after investigators saw a video and pictures of a rat in the window.
The photos were posted on websites and local TV. Witnesses around the area report that they have seen rats crossing the streets, often going in and out of the restaurant.
Jesse Ship, arts editor of Format Magazine, filmed the picture of the rat while on his way to work. "I was just walking past Happy Seven the restaurant today on Spadina and snagged images of a rat in the window on my cell phone, sitting right next to the health inspector sign," he said, commenting on his find. "The restaurant wasn't open yet."
The video of the rat in the restaurant, which according to blogTO, is one of the most liked Chinese restaurants in Toronto, was then posted on the video sharing site Vimeo four days ago. It took a couple of days after the publication of the video to attract widespread press attention.
Until the video of the rat was made public, officials believed that the restaurant was safe, giving it a pass for food safety. The restaurant will be given permission to reopen once professionals are hired to remove the rats, and inspectors are satisfied that they have been removed.
Inspectors have closed 41 restaurants in Toronto this year, six of which have been in the same area as Happy Seven. Of the restaurants in the same area, half have been for rat problems. Article 2: A woman in a Lady Deadpool outfit, known under the pseudonym "Tumbling Cosplay", is interviewed.
Pop culture event Toronto ComiCon continued to grow this year, the sixth year since its restructuring as a three day program. Beginning on Friday evening, it continued through to Sunday. Organized by the same company as Fan Expo Canada, the event offered exhibitors, retailers, an artist's alley, and panels.
Cast members from Canadian teen show Degrassi: The Next Generation, has spawned Broadway star Drake (musician)|Drake, and others, the earlier show including Stefan Brogren remains popular, particularly in Canada. Brogren told industry publication Kidscreen: "A part of me thought we would do it for five years and maybe get recognized for a couple of years afterwards and then that would be it. I had no idea it would turn out to be such an important thing in so many peopleʼs lives and not just in Canada, but around the world."
The current program is now distributed by Netflix, and Brogen remains a cast member as school principal, in addition to being a producer and director.
It was the first time the cast did a convention event. The cast also plan to tour to other conventions in Canada this year.
Also appearing were Star Trek: Voyager, and Star Wars: The Phantom Menace.
Panels at the convention focused on topics like steampunk costuming, wig styling, recently rebooted comic , toy collecting, and the history of comic books in Canada over the decades, in conjunction with Canada's sesquicentennial year. Cast members from The Sean Ward Show appeared at the event, meeting guests to the convention and hosting a panel about the superhero comedy YouTube channel which has more than 600 million views.
Many cosplayers at the event gave their own personal twists to recognizable characters. Two takes on Disney Princesses, for example: one group turned Moana, Cinderella, Mulan and Snow White into lightsaber-wielding boudoir photo shoot later that day. Other twists included a Wookie version of Winnie the Pooh, sophisticated armour based on Pokemon characters, and a Stormtrooper from .
Toronto Comicon 2017 Jedi princesses.jpg|Jedi Princesses.
Toronto Comicon 2017 Cinderella boudoir.jpg|Boudoir Cinderella by IronKitty Cosplay.
Toronto Comicon 2017 Chewpooh stranglehold.jpg|Chewbecca/Winnie the Pooh strangles a Stormtrooper.
Toronto Comicon 2017 Pokemon armour.jpg|Pokemon armour.
Toronto Comicon 2017 Planet of the Apes.jpg| Stormtrooper.
Toronto Comicon 2017 d.jpg|thumb|Disney characters styled as .
Ended series were the name of the game when it comes to costumes inspired by television, with few exceptions. One duo seen by Wikinews' reporter, but unfortunately not photographed, was inspired by Canadian international co-production spy series X Company, which aired its final episode just days before the event.
Toronto Comicon 2017 Kim Possible.jpg|The titular character of with Shego.
Toronto Comicon 2017 Alf.jpg|.
Toronto Comicon 2017 Dalek.jpg|A from Doctor Who Society of Canada explores the show floor.
Toronto Comicon 2017 Dr Claw.jpg|Dr. Claw from .
Toronto Comicon 2017 Sesame Street Yip Yip.jpg|A Sesame Street Yip-Yip alien.
Toronto Comicon 2017 Power Ranger.jpg|Three of the .
Toronto Comicon 2017 Squirtle.jpg|thumb|Pokemon character .
Toronto Comicon 2017 Pokemon.jpg|Squirtle and .
Toronto Comicon 2017 Vanellope.jpg|Vanellope from at Toronto Comicon 2017.
Toronto Comicon 2017 Astrid.jpg|Astrid from .
Toronto Comicon 2017 Forever Fairest.jpg|Princesses from Forever Fairest.
Toronto Comicon 2017 Moana.jpg|The titular character from .
Superheroes, video game characters, and others rounded out the lineup.
Toronto Comicon 2017 Poison Ivy Harley Quinn.jpg|Harley Quinn.
Toronto Comicon 2017 Captain Canuck.jpg|Locally-created hero , as cosplayed by the founder of Canadian Comic Books Wiki
Toronto Comicon 2017 Roadhog Overwatch.jpg|Roadhog from the video game Overwatch.
Toronto Comicon 2017 Chocobo.jpg|Chocobo, a character from , by Wanpans Cosplay.
Toronto Comicon 2017 Fantastic Four.jpg|Susan Storm and Thing from .
Toronto Comicon 2017 Hawkman Hawkgirl.jpg|Hawkman and Hawkgirl.
Toronto Comicon 2017 anime unidentified.jpg|Anime inspired outfits.
Toronto Comicon 2017 axe.jpg|Skyrim characters by DKreations.
Toronto Comicon 2017 b.jpg|Janna from .
Toronto Comicon 2017 box girl.jpg|A wide cosplay.
Toronto Comicon 2017 dancing.jpg|Dancing on the 700s level.
Toronto Comicon 2017 e.jpg|Blue Beetle.
Toronto Comicon 2017 Greedo.jpg|Greedo from the .
Toronto Comicon 2017 Tali’Zorah Mass Effect.jpg|Tali’Zorah nar Rayya, a female Quarian from .
Toronto Comicon 2017 The Emperor.jpg|501st Legion booth.
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Article 1: Noosa 15 to 10 to win the 2013 Sunshine Coast Rugby Union premiership yesterday afternoon at the Sunshine Coast Stadium, Bokarina, Queensland. Noosa had won both the Reserve grade and Under 19s Grand Finals against Maleny, 36–11 and 22–5 respectively.
Maroochydore had finished on top of the ladder, six points clear of Noosa in second. The two sides would meet in the major semi final where Noosa ran out winners by 11 points. Maroochydore then defeated Caboolture in the Preliminary Final.
From its beginnings in 1982 through 2006, Maroochydore and Noosa were the only two clubs to win the Sunshine Coast A-grade rugby union premiership. University were the team to break this run — winning in 2007, 2008, and 2009. Noosa would reclaim the premiership in 2010 before University and Caboolture won the next two respectively. Article 2: Ap Iorwerth in 2021.
The last undecided Members of the Welsh Senedd (MSs) for the Plaid Cymru party, Siân Gwenllian, released a statement yesterday announcing neither would seek the party's leadership ahead of the June 16 deadline to stand for the MS-only position, slating to become leader unopposed June 16 unless an MS reversed their decision.
"A contest within a party is a good thing in almost all circumstances, but if the more experienced people didn't want to stand for various reasons, there we are", former Plaid chairman stated Friday in an interview with BBC Radio. "And if there is to be only one candidate, it's important that the party unites behind Rhun".
Former Plaid leader Adam Price, who stepped down in May.
Plaid Cymru (Party of Wales), the third-largest grouping in the Senedd — part of Wales' devolved government — with 12 members, behind Welsh Conservatives' 16, has expressed support for from the UK.
Ap Iorwerth was born in Meirionnydd and Ynys Môn. He studied politics and Welsh at Cardiff University. | 0 |
Article 1: Guantánamo Bay detention camp inmate Emad Hassan has filed a lawsuit Tuesday against U.S. President Barack Obama, named as chief defendant, regarding alleged U.S. military practices in hunger strike|hunger strikes.
Hassan is a Yemeni national who was captured in 2002 and has been in the military prison for almost 12 years without charge. He has been on a hunger strike since 2007, and is still held in Guantánamo Bay although approved for a 2009 release.
The techniques used to force feed prisoners on hunger strikes involve methods deemed illegal by a report of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights. The prisoners' allegations include their captors using water torture techniques and inserting large nose tubes to deliver food. Strapping down and feeding laxatives to detainees, while force-feeding, is also alleged.
The bid is the first of its kind to proceed and follows a decision by a last month allowing federal judges to rule on Guantánamo force-feeding cases.
The Department of Defense is responsible for the welfare and security of inmates in the prison according to White House officials.
Spokesperson Caitlin Hayden for the White House National Security Council told al-Jazeera: “The Department of Defense has responsibility for the health, welfare and humane treatment of detainees at Guantánamo Bay, and I would refer you to them for further questions about the specifics of their policies and procedures”.
President Obama has previously vowed to close Guantanamo Bay.
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* Article 2: Several conservative groups claiming the 2020 U.S. presidential election was stolen from incumbent President Donald Trump gathered on Saturday in the U.S. capital, Washington D.C., for a rally organized by Women for America First. Reportedly several thousand supporters turned out, with Trump flags and hats, in D.C. to protest, some in front of the Supreme Court of the United States, which rejected, the day before the rally, a lawsuit filed by Texas which tried to overturn the results in Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
Trump tweeted he wasn't aware of the event but would go to see it anyway: "Wow! Thousands of people forming in Washington (D.C.) for Stop the Steal. Didn't know about this, but I'll be seeing them! #MAGA" MAGA stands for Make America Great Again — a slogan commonly used by Trump and his supporters.
Trump flew above the rally on his West Point, New York|West Point, New York, with supporters cheering below. Former Trump adviser and retired general Michael Flynn was on stage while Trump flew over. This was the first time Flynn made a public speech since he was pardoned by Trump. He said "That's pretty cool. Imagine just being able to jump in a helicopter and just go for a joy ride around Washington". Another former Trump adviser, , also spoke in the rally and encouraged supporters to remain hopeful after the recent court decision.
The rallies happened two days before the formal vote of the Electoral College to choose the president-elect. Trump and his supporters claimed Joe Biden only won the elections due to voter fraud and sought to overturn the results. Organizers of the rally said they were fighting corruption and dishonesty. Flynn said there was a lack of transparency in the elections and urged the crowd to consider what the counters are hiding from them and why don't they let them look at the signatures and at the machines.
A couple from Florida, Richard and Lisa Parry, made a 14-hour drive to D.C. for the rally. Lisa Parry, a retired nurse, said, "I went to bed at 1 o'clock and Trump was ahead. There's no way... I don't believe it, it's fake." | 1 |
Article 1: The news of the death of Michael Jackson yesterday caused problems for web sites and caused hoax reports of other celebrity deaths to be posted. Twitter, where several celebrities immediately posted their comments on the news, saw its update frequency double as soon as the news broke. Facebook's update frequency tripled. Temporary server outages were reported for Twitter, TMZ.com (the site that originally broke the story), and the web site of the Los Angeles Times.
On Wikinews, the report of Jackson's death received 1,150 page hits in its first hour of publication, almost 9 times as much as the number of page hits received by Wikinews' second most popular story that hour. At its peak, the Wikinews story received 4,466 page hits in one hour. On Wikipedia, an edit war ensued when users repeatedly deleted references while reports of his death remained unverified. Once a credible source, the Los Angeles Times, verified the story, Wikipedia published the news.
Hoax stories sparked by news of Jackson's death included false reports of the deaths of Jeff Goldblum and Harrison Ford. These stories were rapidly revealed to be hoaxes, but some news outlets carried the stories by mistake. The entertainment report on Nine Network's Today show, for example, mistakenly carried the story of Goldblum's death. Goldblum was in fact alive and well in Los Angeles, California, according to an official statement issued by his publicist.
The hoaxes originated on a web site that generates superficially genuine but false news reports from pre-set formulae, into which the celebrity name of one's choice can be entered. One of the options available is for the report to state that the celebrity "dies in New Zealand" at Kauri Cliffs near Matauri Bay. Because of this, many people attempted to contact New Zealand police, forcing Inspector Kerry Watson of the NZ police to issue the following statement:
:"Police at Kerikeri are receiving phone calls regarding a person falling from a cliff at Kauri Cliff. There is no such incident and police have no information to provide."
This is not the first time that this particular hoax has circulated. The exact same story, with the same cliffs, circulated about Tom Hanks in 2006 and about Tom Cruise in 2008. Cruise's publicist, Jeff Raymond, stated at the time that the story was "erroneous and unreliable Internet garbage". Article 2: Mac Miller in 2017.
On Friday, was found dead in his bedroom at home in , Los Angeles, California, United States, according to reports. He was 26.
According to news website , a friend called emergency services from Mac Miller's apartment, in regard to a . According to the coroner, Mac Miller was pronounced dead at the scene.
Investigation was ongoing to identify the cause of the death.
Reports said Mac Miller previously , which reportedly affected his two-year relationship with singer . They broke up in May this year.
Mac Miller was an US rapper, singer and record producer. He was born Malcolm James McCormick in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, US in 1992. In 2007, at the age of fifteen, he released his first under the nickname "EZ Mac". He later switched to name "Mac Miller".
Mac_Miller_at_Splash!20_Festival.jpg|Mac Miller at a festival in 2017.
Mac_Miller_(5)_–_splash!_Festival_20_(2017).jpg|Mac Miller at a festival in 2017.
The_Space_Migration_Tour_London_Music_-_Mac_Miller.jpg|Mac Miller in London in 2013.
Mac_Miller_Governors_Ball_2011.jpg|Mac Miller in 2011.
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Article 1: Guantánamo Bay detention camp inmate Emad Hassan has filed a lawsuit Tuesday against U.S. President Barack Obama, named as chief defendant, regarding alleged U.S. military practices in hunger strike|hunger strikes.
Hassan is a Yemeni national who was captured in 2002 and has been in the military prison for almost 12 years without charge. He has been on a hunger strike since 2007, and is still held in Guantánamo Bay although approved for a 2009 release.
The techniques used to force feed prisoners on hunger strikes involve methods deemed illegal by a report of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights. The prisoners' allegations include their captors using water torture techniques and inserting large nose tubes to deliver food. Strapping down and feeding laxatives to detainees, while force-feeding, is also alleged.
The bid is the first of its kind to proceed and follows a decision by a last month allowing federal judges to rule on Guantánamo force-feeding cases.
The Department of Defense is responsible for the welfare and security of inmates in the prison according to White House officials.
Spokesperson Caitlin Hayden for the White House National Security Council told al-Jazeera: “The Department of Defense has responsibility for the health, welfare and humane treatment of detainees at Guantánamo Bay, and I would refer you to them for further questions about the specifics of their policies and procedures”.
President Obama has previously vowed to close Guantanamo Bay.
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* Article 2: Vitaly Filipchenko.
In early May, Wikinews extended an invitation to Vitaly Filipchenko, an independent candidate in the , set to take place November 2nd, alongside other candidates. Filipchenko answered some questions about his policies and campaign during a phone interview.
Filipchenko, registered on the Sputnik (news agency)|Sputnik. He has since naturalised as a United States citizen. According to the web site, Filipchenko has been educated in road construction and maintenance and owns a moving services company; he describes himself on his web site as a "small business owner". On his web site's platform page, he says that "my English may not be perfect - but my platform is."
Incumbent Democratic mayor Bill de Blasio, who won re-election in the WPIX and New York City Department of Sanitation Brooklyn Eric Adams leading with 21.1% and 20.1%, respectively.
Okay. My name is Vitaly Filipchenko, I am an independent candidate for New York City mayor.
'What was it like growing up under Dissolution of the Soviet Union|Soviet Union's dissolution?'
So, really interesting. Like, basically, if you give a child a little bit more interest and a chance to be, how do I put it, in ; it's like you give a child the stock market. Giving that kind of information: what this mean, what this is, what this for? That time was like that.
'What made you decide to run for New York City mayor?'
I have not seen an honest mayor before, trying to see how immigrants get marginalised, because all this big money. Doesn't matter where you have it: from Democrats, from Republicans. They just followed that money. And all these big politician people? Its only interest: money, not real problems from the people. They doesn't matter, Democrats, Republicans, they just making money. It's a money machine, for politician's gains.
'According to Sputnik News, you're the first Russian candidate for New York City mayor. Do you think that will help you among the immigrant population in the city?'
Not really, because people are so afraid. We didn't see the real democracy in New York. Everyone can speak up for democracy, but half of them are not registering to vote, half of them, they do not believe anymore in politicians — doesn't matter who you are — and a lot of people, just like, they don't care, you know? They can talk too much, but they're not doing anything.
'Why should New Yorkers vote for you?'
Because I'm a basic, basically like the whole history of, like, American immigrants: I came from nothing, and became a self-made businessman, I became a hardworking person. And anyone from any kind of country, anyone from any kind of community, they can see me reflecting themself, themselves, because they're working really hard. I'm not standing behind any kind of big corporation, I'm not standing behind any kind of money. I'm just a regular guy. I want to be honest, I want to make a real democracy progress.
Restaurant Displays Sign 'We're All In This Together" New York City COVID19 - 49784186793.jpg|thumb|Boarded New York City restaurant displays sign reading "we're all in this together" during the COVID-19 pandemic on April 16, 2020.
Lots of people, they just get tons of money, and they don't care. They not, really don't care. They don't have experience with what we have a problem in New York. I represent small business owners, I represent immigrants, I represent people who will struggle in this pandemic. Other candidates? They do not represent anyone. They just represent themselves. They are one per cent of the rich people. They never have problems, because rich people make more money on this problem. Other populations, like office employees, who've been working in an office in a pandemic, who're still working from home, and making more than 100 thousand, and it's working at home! They just do not see the problem, what's exactly, what's going on right now. They just keep working!
I represent essential business who are really working outside, who are really working with the streets, working with the people who are exactly doing the job for the people. Like, most of them, these employees, this is a high-level money, they're just still working from home, and still making the same amount of money. We, we are struggling, because we got big problems with our business: a lot of businesses get shut down, a lot of businesses get closed like restaurants, deliveries. And a small business owners, it's like really struggling, and in New York, the Mayor has done nothing for this. It's also a horrible person.
'You've criticised to Sputnik News that "if we look at other states, warm Florida, Georgia, their state budgets are not even ten times but 20, 50 times smaller than New York's. And their roads are better." Could you elaborate on that?'
Oh, it's simple. I'm a civil engineer. I got an engineering degree for building roads: highway roads, and you can see how the difference in the states of New York, Florida, Tennessee, Virginia, North Carolina. In Florida, they got a budget of USD4 billion, and the roads are so much better. In New York state, you got like a 190 billion budget in the state, and it got ten times worse, because I can see what they're doing right now. They just manipulate the budget.
They're doing one road, and it's supposed to be if you do a good job, you can repair this road after ten years. But if you do repairs after like one or two years, they just motion budget, they're just like, obviously they're stealing money. If you're doing the same repair after two years, it's obviously "oh you're stupid, you don't know what you're doing?" They're just a regular: sit, then try to steal the money from the budget. It's called corruption.
And I see all these roads, in New York, I'm not looking from just the perspective of like a simple idiot who doesn't know how to build the roads — I'm professional, I know how to build the roads — and I saw in 2019, on a Brooklyn expressway, there was building of two ramps, it's like 500 feet, building completely new, for six months, and a level did not match by like eight inches. They tried to connect to ramp to the main Brooklyn express; the level didn't match by like eight inches. They just demolish everything, and start building again from over.
It's like, "Excuse me. You just spent the whole budget, and doing it again, what does this mean?" It's like, you engineered, your was non-effectual, or what's wrong? And when I was spoke with other people, it's not only one example in New York. A lot of examples, a lot of—because I'm living in Manhattan, I can see repairing the roads like the first time again. They did repair two years ago, and they just repair it again. It's like, "Excuse me. Why do you waste a lot of money? And the quality with doing this repair, is, like, horrible!"
Then-commissioner of the Mark Trottenberg
We do have Department of Transportation, Manhattan Bridge, Interstate 278|Brooklyn Expressway — Manhattan, Bronx, pothole repair; in the condition of who does this job, I don't know who signs in contracts. Was this like a construction company, they do not have experience, or they're just like not qualified for this job.
And more important: if you're Department of Transportation, you have to sign an agreement. If you're doing a bad job, you have to repair. Because, how are you going to get paid for a bad job? If you do a new job for interviewing me, and it's like probably, your boss gonna like "oh, we're not going to pay you because it does nothing." Same thing. This person, Department of Transportation, Polly Trottenberg, they got moved up in Washington DC at a high position. It's like, that's a horrible job in New York, are you guys in DC completely idiots to hire this person, or something is corrupt. Same thing with the Mayor.
And if you start pointing each one corner in New York, you will be surprised. Like, for example, all these candidates who are running like "I have experience, I built so many low-income houses", they didn't do anything, you just negotiated with when you change the from like twenty-story building to forty-story building and asking "give me ten, twenty apartments" and they give you ten, twenty apartments for low-income because you're not building anything! For eight years in New York, low-income NYCHA didn't build nothing, it's still like negotiators with landlords.
In my position, I travel like New York City, we can build a lot of buildings, for high-quality luxury buildings, can sell it. And all this profit go back to New York budget. We say we can build, like NYCHA building, but actually residents can be like co-op, they're allowed to decide where the budget has to go, not like, for example, New York City to decide "well, we have to pay that whole buildings." I don't think they need any kind of painting, they have to just repair like the plumbing system, the electric system, and the people are in NYCHA who like co-op can decide it: "okay, we need this first and then this second." And a lot of Mitchell-Lama did not do many more after the 50s-60s.
I want to build this Mitchell-Lama loan, same thing. We didn't have a clinic who wants New York City, because if you build new clinics, if you create a lot of construction jobs to build, because the city was doing—they just hired a little company with a high-quality payroll and have wasted money again! If you just hire New York City employers to create the New York City jobs, and start building, like, New York City clinics. You can hire a professional physician, all these doctors. It's when we create more jobs, and all these jobs are going to be get paid for New York. It's a simple way: stop wasting money for all these big billionaires; you just put a lot of infrastructure money to these billionaires! We can do that for citizens' selves, to help ourselves. That's my policy.
Just like, I'm doing this from my view, because I'm living every day, one more day on the street, with these problems on the street. I understand what's going on. Most of New Yorkers just see something wrong, it's like "oh, I don't know what's happened, I don't like it". But they never focus what's the problem. What's exactly the base of the problem.
Demonstration against hate crimes directed towards Asian Americans in Andrew Ratto
'Your web site has said "I do not want to defund police - but retrain." Could you please elaborate on that?'
Oh, simple way! You have information about, like, what's going on right now in New York. A lot of, it's called , but if you be specific, what does it mean, 'hate'? It means, hate Asian; it's meant for the basic information. What they say 'hate crime', it means Asian people hate Asian people, but it's not. Right now in New York City, most of 90 per cent of black people are completely destroying Asian people, and it's meaning it's not 'hate crime', it's actually a racist crime. I have to be specific, and I have to call a specific name for what's going on, and they try to cover this and for this to know it's just 'hate crime'.
Not possible, 'hate crime'. It's a completely racist crime! Because most of them, who are doing this act, it was like a different ethnicity of people. It's a, obviously, race crime. And to find out with this problem, you have to put more officers to work, it means you have to pay overtime, and to pay more officers, for example, if you go every day and there's, say, like ten thousand officers, you have to put in fifteen thousand, because you have to be undercover, you have to be taking more shifts, you have to be spending more time on the job to stop this crime.
If you want to defund police, how are you going to stop the crime? It's like Catch-22: we want to defund police, but we need more security on the streets. That doesn't work. And I say it's like "no, it's not defund police, you have to retrain." Because in my opinion, a bad person has to be in a bad place; a good person has to be in a good place. It doesn't matter if police officer, or just regular citizen. If you do something wrong, you deserve to be in the wrong place. Same thing with police! If you're not deserving to be a good officer, excuse me, we have to fire you. I have to get trained-better police officers; it's better quality.
In most of the states, for example Vermont, Virginia, Georgia, North Carolina, District of Columbia, a police officer has to pass a physical exam every six months. For example, you have to run in 1.7 miles on the time. If you look at the New York police officer? Obviously, after three years, in martial arts, boxing, , because they don't have experience.
If a person is really sick, what's he gonna do, if they have a power? Just going to shoot you. Simple answers. And I saw a lot of New York police: overweight, and not ready for any kind of physical activity. That's a big problem. New York State, they're screaming "we Democrats, we're for democracy", not actually, not guys. You're just hypocrites. They try to blame everyone except themselves.
'How do you plan to, in your words, "support small businesses with rent law changes"?'
Oh, I told everybody. When it was an epidemic—COVID-19 problems, I told everybody a simple way, because I was trying to volunteer for New York City Cares: it's a food distribution from the city from volunteers, from donors who, like, small business owners that needed the food. Now obviously food banks: not bad, not bad, but again, it's a canned food, not a lot of good food. And, in my opinion, back in the time, the city can make a contract with all small business restaurants. Together, for example, for one period of time, from like 8am to 10pm, the city will pay money for, like, breakfast or lunchtime for homeless people, who lost a job or have low-income. People can get a normal meal, and in the late time, all these restaurants can be working like regular restaurants, and you can make your profit and money.
Because you can see a lot of businesses were shut down, because they can't survive. In my opinion, it's completely mismanagement with small businesses. We just can sign the contract. First of all, we can help these people who really struggle with food; they can get a good-quality food. It's like what all deserves.
'How do you plan to, in your words, "Build back a greener, fairer city"?'
First of all, you should notice the city's like a cement jungle: a lot of , a lot of cement. And again, if you notice, we do a lot of bus lane and bike lane, and a lot of people know it's really toxic paint. When you do this painting, you can make it worse for the environment. And most important, when you're planning bike lanes, bus lanes not correctly, you create your traffic contractions. When you create your traffic contractions, what's happening? A lot of oxocarbons coming from the cars, a lot is congestion and it's going to be worse.
People say like "oh, we got the bikes, that's safe". No, because we still have stores, we still have deliveries, we still have trucks that have to deliver with food, have to deliver it with any kind of supplies, material, but where's he going to park? That's no way to find the parking. That's really going to have to double park, triple park, and blocking in the street, and it causes congestion. And the people still like to stop because they have to deliver, they have to support small business. But city can't violation, one, second, well, it's a big traffic, sort of with conjunction with oxycarbonite. This means there was planning completely not, how would I say in really nice way...completely stupid.
A forested flyover in Fujieda, Japan on June 30, 2010.
Because I see all this planning was like, they created, okay, for example, if you notice a lot of parking spots for trucks, for cars, for deliveries, it was a parking zone. But, because restaurants were struggling, they put in extra seats from the parking spots. It means they took all the parking spots for cars, but the cars have to deliver the food, and they have to plan, where they have to park? Nowhere. It's deteriorated worse and worse, this was planning completely stupid. If you plan in a correct way it deserves, like different countries Norway, like British, you can see exactly how the location of the parking spot. How it's allocated all this green zone.
If you put in a lot of bushes, if you plant in a lot of green trees, and then you make it a better environment. If you create it like a sidewalk over the road, nothing across the road like a lot of China, Korea and Japan, they created crosspasses over the road. It's like small parks, each one intersection is like a tiny park with the trees, with benches, and it's safe! People can cross over the road, and they have to cross the road, they go over the path, there's a small—tiny parks, it's a great idea that already exists in China, and in different countries.
And I was planning the same thing to create in New York City but again, all these candidates are screaming "I'm going to put in four billion dollars on the parks", "I'm going to put ten billion over that", guys. You just drop the name and numbers. You never offered any kind of specific job. Like for example, I live in New York City, Manhattan, where you have East Side Park. And now Mayor put it in the budget 1.2 billion dollars to renovating the park. But the park is functional. It exists, and I'm running every Sunday there. It's working really good, but you want to do the repair, idiot. There really exists this park, you have to create a different one which does not exist and will, like for example Bronx, Queens, they need more parks for people. Why focus all big money for little Manhattan?
A portrait of Andrew Cuomo taken September 22, 2010.
And to figure out exactly where is the problem, where the problem is actually that we have the big Q (New York City Subway service)|Q trains, they spent four billion dollars. For four billion dollars, you can buy Stuyvesant-Cooper with the 20 thousand apartments for the same price. 20 thousand apartments, you can put all these people who need a low-income property. To pay it all, it's a lot of apartments.
And I see all this planning, what's going on in New York, it's just like it's a waste of money. They're pretending we need to build train station, of course we do, but we've have to look with the needs first.
SM1 0592 (27941996708).jpg|thumb|Andrew Yang speaking in New Orleans, Louisiana on April 30, 2018.
'Why have you decided to run as an independent candidate?'
Because the problem is that Democrats and Republicans: they just, most of them, they say they're for people. But actually they're not for people, they're just for money. Because if you're like, for example, Andrew Yang 2020 presidential campaign|running for President in the United States, now you're running for mayor. Dude, you already got power, you got business, you can help them as anyone else.
I don't have a power, I just to be like speak out from the people who really deserves the help. Because I'm living in this problem, and as you guys are not living the problem! Because they're just looking above us, because they have a different style of life, they own the apartments, they own the houses, they got assets of millions of dollars. I'm just a regular guy! I can speak up for everybody. That's my main form because I try to help people, because I know the problem. I'm living the shoot with these people.
'What has current mayor Bill de Blasio not done that you would like to do instead?'
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio riding the bus on April 30, 2021.
Oh first of all, he completely screwed the city. If you remember back with COVID-19 became; he said like "okay, guys, I give you free bus rides" instead of saying like "no, no bus rides, no any kind of train", and if I was the mayor I can say "you know, people, you can use the bikes, like whatever Traffic ticket|tickets they got through because they have to work, they can't find the parking spot and again paying a lot of money.
As for me, if you drive a new car, you got a big distance from anybody else. It's the virus is not spreading out. But back in the time, de Blasio said like "okay guys, everyone in the MTA Metropolitan Transportation Authority is essential business". But bacteria don't care about essentially; you're not essential, you just spread disease. And instead he said like "all these busses are free in New York." Really, and all that mentality for people, free bus can get more riders in the bus, and he obviously just spreads more and more COVID-19. That's a big problem.
And if you want to do essential business, okay, I understand! Some people don't have a car, some people—like for example, do you know many nurses live in , they have to drive their car? A lot, a lot! And if you try to create, you have to do, for example, like China, Korea or Russia. What've they done? They created more jobs, they put a person who was working on a station to check your temperature, and if you see the high fevers like, if you necessarily have to go back home, you cannot spread the fever. That's how they created the job, and that is how they stop the spread.
Because I remember back, I would always wake up six in the morning, I walk in flat six stories, and I see it packed: whole train, whole bus, was packed. Even right now, even two months, five months, six months, because I wake up, I'm working to go work by the train, by the bus. And I see it's completely packed.
If you want to do a better job, you can send to people who can do like, you know, like cashiers, or like managers of like jet skis, like excuse me guys, in this wagon: 20 people, next wagon please, 20 people. To get the distance. Back in the time, why this was so horrible, COVID-19 struck in New York with people spreading through the empty space in their busses because nobody came at a distance. That was bad, bad, horrible, it was a bad job for a mayor, and bad job for Governor Cuomo. Both of them did a horrible job.
'Who did you support in the 2017 New York City mayoral election, if anyone?'
: 2017? One time I think...2017...'17 I don't remember, but the first one when de Blasio came, I was supporting him, I didn't know him better, and obviously it was my big mistake. I was thinking "okay, nice family, good guy", I was then from his house. Then later by a couple months, I was like "nope! Same, same corruption."
Because you know, some people, they pretend, it won't help. But when you get more information—because most of them, you can see information for any kind of candidate because they got more money, so they can post themselves but from better sides. But like for example, like immigrants like me, they get marginalised. Because why do I have to put "simple guy" to be a mayor? Because the one per cent in New York City, they never get to problem, because rich people want to say in New York, they feel good. All these guys who is representing New Yorkers, they are the one per cent. You got a high-payroll job, got tons of money. Guys, you don't know the problem, how do you know it helps the poor person, if you never live in his shoes?
That's a big problem. Because I came here in this country. Tourist visa. Overstayed, not legal. I was afraid to get kicked out by ICE Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Then I got married, and got Citizenship of the United States|citizenship, then I got my company. I run a moving business for ten years. Every day working hard, every day on the street I know what's going on, what kind of problem.
This was my main idea because I know the problems. I'm not conceived from any kind of paper, or statistic, or anywhere in a computer. No, I really live this problem. Other guys? They try to pretend to be living the problem. But you never know the problem. How do you be like a person who's struggling for food, trying to listen for . Since right now, same thing.
'Who did you support in the 2018 New York State gubernatorial election, so, the one for governor, basically?'
: No, I did not support anyone.
'Who did you support in the 2020 presidential election, if anyone?'
: Secret information, private information.
'You lived in Russia, so, who did you support in the , if anyone, if you want to say?'
: I did not vote that time.
'Well yes, but did you support anyone, any one candidate?'
: I cannot tell all the full information, because it can be really bad for my family because they're still in Russia.
White House Coronavirus Update Briefing (49746062356).jpg|thumb|Anthony Fauci speaks at a coronavirus update briefing at the US White House, flanked by then-Vice President Mike Pence on April 6, 2020.
'New York City has been notorious for being one of the heaviest-affected cities at the start of the pandemic, and still the city has over 930 thousand total reported cases of COVID-19 and over 32 thousand deaths. How will you address this, if elected?'
: Okay, first of all, you have to give the full information. If you remember Dr Fauci, he said "oh, we don't have enough PPE personal protective equipment, we don't enough supplies, oh, guys, don't use your mask, we need this mask for all these nurses." It's a big mistake, big mistake. When he opens his mouth, people are like "okay, we don't have to", and it was really ridiculously spreading out. Because if you get a high position, even open your mouth, you have to think about twice, but he did not think about.
Because I spoke to a lot of Russian doctors, American doctors, skilled professionals; because if you do any kind of procedure, you have to put it in mask. You go to your patient, you write it down: information, you check this person, then you get out from the room. You take it (mask) off, and throw it away because it's already hazard material. You cannot go, with this mask, in a different room.
And back in the time, they didn't give you full information: how to operate it, what they have to do; because a lot of people don't know to put it, gloves, how taking off this gloves. Because when I was an auxiliary, I was training for CPI, and they explained how to use the mask, how to use the gloves, how taking off this gloves. But this high-quality position person got access for TV, never gave you free classes to explain how this works, how to use your mask because I will see on the street people holding the cell phone, Turnstile|swipe it, put it in the pocket, and still using gloves. Guys, you cannot touch this stuff in the gloves and put it in the pocket because when you're coming back home, you pull it out of your wallet without gloves, and all this bacteria going to spread it out.
Workers sanitise a Metropolitan Transportation Administration (MTA) bus on May 6, 2020.
Another big problem: most of the foreign countries, they did sanitise the street. They did it using, like, UV light, they've been using special sprays on the street because when you walk, where usually goes the virus? It's on the ground. And you step in your shoe, whatever you got the mask, whatever you got any kind of gloves, you're going to bring them home in your shoes. But other countries, they're doing better because they did disinfect the stret. New York City has done nothing because they're like "oh, we want to put more money over there, over there", but it didn't do exactly the job what it needs.
Even they started disinfecting the MTA after six, seven months later, is it like, ridiculously stupid?
'How will you help racial and ethnic minorities, if elected?'
: Again, I will tell it a simple way. All these people who are working really hard, deserve the better expectation for benefits, for any kind of credits, for any kind, like, loan, because right now, you can see all these big businesses get a lot of loans, regardless like , but regular people who are working really hard, who love their jobs, they don't have anything!
For my opinion, I would like to create a lot of extra classes: re-qualification, because if you created more Community gardens in New York City|community gardens to get organic food, to teach the kids. Because I grew up in Russia, everybody knows because everybody has a when we grow, like, all these vegetables or just fruits, and we learned how to do this. American kids don't know because they don't have a lot of programmes, and if you created everything back to community, to school, to give them gardens, to colleges, to any kind of big—for example, like...
And you can't see it, you got a big square roof, and you can plant the garden over there. Any kind of building can create a small garden with that. You can create it, more oxygen with all this green, because it's a simple, it's a biological process. You have to put in more green, and if you create it to start back to community, that will be co-operation. You can help all these people who really struggle: any kind of minority, any who's struggling for new job, we can create the job. Stop giving away money in jobs for big corporations; they already have enough money.
You have to focus on ethnicity, on the people who lost their job. Don't forget: New York City still has age discrimination. Try to get a job: if you're wrong, you can get a job! If you're getting over 50, no way! That's a big problem. It doesn't matter who you are: Russian, Asian, from Africa; if you're over 50, it's really difficult. And if you're an immigrant, no, harder, because we've got a . And then, they're looking at nothing but like "oh, you can't speak English." Yes we can, but we got accents." Doesn't matter.
We saw people coming from different countries, got two or three educations, two or three colleges. But you know, in America, if you're someone that's got an accent, already it's like "foreigner." I know some people who told me on the street "go back to your country." Doesn't matter, but I'm still here because I love this country.
'Data collected by CBS News finds homeless New Yorkers are two to three times more likely to die from COVID-19 than the general population, and homeless students graduate at a sixteen per cent lower rate. 88 per cent of individuals facing homelessness in New York City are black or . How will you address the homelessness crisis, if elected?'
: Okay first of all, again, they try to—"oh, we got a lot of homeless people", yes, I know. But, for example, you have to start from basic. Each one person who is on the street homeless is because they lost their job. It's like thirty per cent: thirty per cent are getting drugs, thirty per cent have got some kind of issue previously. For me, that's what I said: we have to create new jobs.
We have to participate each one person who loves their job, retrain and give one more chance to get a new job. That's why my plan to build new houses using people for the city, that's when I created for the city: more jobs. Because you're going to get more salary, you're going to get more insurance and they get medicine. That's when I'm planning to build medical buildings and, as they build on by city, it's like if you created more jobs, all these people from the homeless, they can get retrained.
Cropped portrait of President Joe Biden taken March 3, 2021.
Most important for me: all these college students who are in New York, people try to—"oh, I'm going to give you for free college tuition, blah blah blah", even Biden said that, but we have zero. For me, honestly, I'm not going to promise any kind of free college but, I got a guarantee: if you go to New York City College, you're going to guarantee to have a job in New York City because the city gonna create a lot of jobs, and it's gonna be enough for everyone.
Then-President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signs the United States Employment Service.
It's like with FDR: he created more jobs with more money, exactly in all the cities in all the states, not only for people who gives this opportunity to live a good life, not for big corporations, because big corporations already got enough money, why do they have to sign this big corporation contract if I keep creating a lot of small jobs? Focus on the people, not on the big money.
'How will you handle the vaccine rollout?'
: Okay, simple way. I grew up in Russia. Each one person in Russia knows vaccine is good. What we're having right now, it's a misinformation from vaccine. People like "oh, I represent whatever, what it's called, I will beat SARS, let's do this, I represent this ethnicity, let's do that," this is the simple way: you have to give the classes. Some kind of classes' information: how does vaccine work, it's what's better, what's worse.
Because right now, people, most of people don't have education and they're thinking like "vaccine is so stupid", but if you created some kind of classes. And again, if you created classes, you created the job: who is going to be training on these classes, who gives this—provides this information for community. I mean, we already solved two problems: we created more jobs to give better education for communities.
Because right now, people, they don't care: "oh, government always gonna lie to us." And if you created this information in classes, people can believe it, what's going on. And you have to give some kind of example, not just say "we have to be vaccinated." If you show how it's work, what is the problem and how does it solve this problem. It's when you give information, and the people will decide better because they got better information. Right now, we don't have any kind of information. Why do they have to get this information from the governments who don't care about me? They just offered me to put it, vaccine, but didn't explain in a simple way for simple people.
'If you couldn't vote for yourself, who would you vote for?'
: I don't know, probably someone who is like similar like me, who is an immigrant, who understands the problem, who did in my shoes, because I cannot vote anyone else who's just like "I'm going to support black and blah, brown community, blah blah blah." It's a bullshit. I want to know who person who will struggle is, because most of them, like, they get tons of money, you know, and they have alternative: if you're not gonna win, you're still in a comfortable life, with a comfortable payroll, with a comfortable community. I need a person like me who can use it; it means like he's got only one chance to help the community.
A portrait of then-President Abraham Lincoln taken November 8, 1863.
That's more important for me. If you're looking back like Lincoln President, he was starting from an axe-man, the chuck in the woods, then he became like postmaster, delivering the mail for the community, and he would talk to each one person when delivering the mail.
You have, you know, like most of these candidates, they just doing; promote themselves. They're not really believe in our needs for people who are really struggling. Because I represent like immigrants, I'm representing small business owners, I'm representing like part of police, I'm representing part of MTA because I've been in one's infrastructure, and it's always a problem. Because I have overview in which one solution. And other candidates, to be honest, they're dropping the cool name or any kind of programme: "you can see with my web site one hop and step for each one day what I'm gonna do." Excuse me, I want to hear you right now, simple explanation.
Because people want to know how. And when. Because I want to see the numbers. Because I want to know exactly how it's work, because I'm a simple guy, I'm not going to be playing like someone cannot calculate it, because I'm an engineer, I know how to calculate, how to measure it, how created this stuff. That's what was studied in college.
'What are some reasons people might not vote for you?'
: Some reasons? I don't know, probably my accent. We still have a lot of racists in New York state, we still have a lot of arrogance. Every time I go to collect the signatures, a lot of Democrats, they said like "oh, already chose one." That's like excuse me, I must get to sign my petition. It's a petition, you just give me chances.
In the basic democracy, everybody gets the same chance to speak up, explain what they're doing, have opportunities to be on the ballot. And these arrogant Democrats, it's like "already chose one, I don't want to vote for you." You're not voting for new—simple explanation. You don't know the rules. You're ready not to represent democracy, democracy exactly are opposite. You have to give the chance for everybody, you have to help everyone, that's how it works because democracy, when you get a process discussion, when you get across in a debate, it's coming up with a real, true solution. That's how democracies work.
That's always really surprising New York. A lot of people? "I don't know, I love this guy, I love this guy." Excuse me! If you want to get real democracy, you have to give chances for everybody, when they coming time to debate, discuss, you can figure out who is better. Because if someone got money, okay, what is about money? Everybody who's a successful businessman I'm going to ask a simple question: "are your employees unionised or not?" That's it! Because big corporations never want to have the union guys, because union guys can be protected by government. That's my answer.
Obviously, all this who's running, they don't care, they just care about themself. And if you see how many contributions they have I suggest it's lying, you know what contributions: you have to match one to eight? And all these candidates got like one million, got contribution from city five million, another one got like half million, got contribution three million. Guys, you still have money, who needs it?
Because all this money for taxpayers who really suffer right now, who need a day, who loves the job, who cannot pay rent, you guys promised to help it and then taking this money from mentioned five, ten contributions and spend it for advertising millions? I think it's hypocrisy. Who try to promise our poor people, and spend money for advertising. Is it hypocrisy?
'Which person from history do you identi-'
: Lincoln. It's the best, my, president.
'Anything else you would like to say, then?'
: You're going to put in information, I'm going to say simple way: I'm a, like, regular guy, from New Yorkers. I just wanna ask if someone wanna help me with volunteers, collect the signatures for petition, please be really welcome, because you can find my web site vitalyformayor.com; f-o-r mayor.com. Because if you believe it, we can win. Because simple people like me with our more important power, our votes, we can change a lot of things.
Because other people, other candidates, they just buy people who collect the signature. I'm not buying, because I don't have any money, I'm not behind any kind of big corporation, I just do it by myself. If someone's interested and believe me, they can contact me on my web site, through my e-mail, office @ vitalyformayor.com, and please, if you can help, we can win. We can prove it: immigrants can get job done!
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Article 1: London, England — This morning, Great Britain beat 5-a-side football by a score of 2–0 at London's Riverbank Arena. Following the match, Great Britain's 41-year-old captain David Clarke retired from the sport with a national team career that included 128 goals scored in 144 caps. Article 2: On Monday, day four of UEFA Euro 2016, Spain defeated Czech Republic 1–0; Republic of Ireland drew 1–1 with Sweden, and Belgium lost 2–0 to Italy. On Tuesday, Hungary stunned Austria in a 2–0 win and Portugal and Iceland shared the spoils with 1–1.
Sergio Ramos led the defending champions as David de Gea guarded the net. Only one player was booked in the entire match — yellow card (association football)|yellow card in the 61st minute. Though Spain had strong ball possession and 91% passing accuracy, they were unable to score until the 87th minute when defender Gerard Piqué scored from Iniesta's cross, winning the game for Spain. played his 100th match for La Roja.
The Hungarians defeated ten-man Austria as Austrian defender Ádám Szalai's goal in the 62nd minute and 's goal in the 87th minute earned them three points as they sit on the top of the table for Group F.
As Cristiano Ronaldo led Portugal, he equalled the record of cap (sport)|international caps for the nation. Birkir Bjarnason scored, and the match ended in a draw. Portugal had 92% passing accuracy and led the ball possession.
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Article 1: Ebner Anivel Rivera-Paz, A leader of the vicious Mara Salvatruchas(MS-13) gang, has issued orders from his prison cell for his followers to teach the American "Minutemen" volunteers a lesson when they begin patrolling the Mexican border tomorrow.
MS-13 gang members are considered to be America's most violent gang with such acts of barbarism as to "cut off the testicles of their enemies and feed them to their vicious dogs" and "cut the heads off their opponents to play soccer with them". However, such allegations of brutality doesn't seem to frighten the "Minutemen" who are a group of Americans who are organizing more than 1,000 volunteers to patrol the Arizona-Mexico border beginning April 1st. They have been called vigilantes by Presidents Bush and Fox and sometimes sarcastically refer to themselves as "undocumented border patrol agents". James Gilchrist, a Vietnam veteran and spokesman for the minutemen in response to the MS-13 threat; "We're not worried because half of our recruits are retired trained combat soldiers..they(MS-13) are just a bunch of punks."
MS-13 gang now has about 20,000 members nationwide and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), has begun to focus on the gang with an initiative they call "Operation Community Shield". The very existence of MS-13 is considered by the Conservative Voice to be a direct consequence of the USA government's 1980's policies in Central America; "the chickens are coming home to roost.Its(MS-13) members are the sons of immigrants from El Salvador and other Central American countries that were forced to flee because of the CIA instigated war during the Reagan Administration that completely destroyed the physical, economic, social, religious and cultural infrastructure of the region. MS-13 was founded in Los Angeles by the offspring of the immigrants for protection." Article 2: Angry traders continued to protest against the Supreme Court's order in favour of resuming the sealing drive in New Delhi. They damaged public property and blocked traffic during the protest.
Police halted over 1,500 traders from various part of the city who were vandalising public transport by blocking and pelting stones on the roads after the SC's order to resume the drive.
According to CNN-IBN, the drive will affect about 5,40,000 shops and 27,00,000 traders across the city. Praveen Khandelwal, secretary general of the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), said that the resumption of the drive is a complete breakdown of the government and administration. So, they had to take extreme steps to oppose the drive.
The traders protested from all over the city including Kamla Nagar in North Delhi, Mayur Vihar, Vikas Marg, Seelampur in East Delhi, Green Park, South Extension, Lajpat Nagar in South Delhi, Rajouri Garden, Rohini in West Delhi and Karol Bagh in Central Delhi.
Most of the schools in New Delhi remained closed today, and the sealing drive was halted. The Group of Ministers, headed by Shivraj Patil are planning to meet with SC's monitoring committee to work out the sealing schedule in the capital. | 0 |
Article 1: Gilbert Diendéré in 2010.
The week-long Michel Kafando and the civilian government. By yesterday the government announced that the presidential guard unit involved in the coup, the , would be dissolved.
This follows the intercession of regional leaders and the regular Army, which sent soldiers to the capital on Monday.
The leaders of the Economic Community of West African States met on Tuesday in the Nigerian capital Abuja and helped with negotiations. A prominent mediation role was also played by the Mossi people|Mossi, who are the country's largest ethnic group. Civilian protests against the coup resulted in the deaths of at least ten people with more than a hundred injured. The attempt to overthrow the government was criticized by the international community, with the African Union suspending the country's membership and describing the coup as "null and void".
The President and Prime Minister Gilbert Diendéré, as head of state and demanded the lifting of a ban on electoral participation by anybody who had tried to help exiled former President to extend his 27-year rule in October 2014. Diendéré was previously Compaoré's chief of staff. Article 2: A Bulgarian police car on July 24, 2019.
Bulgarian officials Friday reported police had discovered eighteen dead migrants, including a child, in an abandoned truck in Lokorsko, northeast of the capital, Sofia.
Authorities made four arrests and transported 34 people to hospital, including five children, some in critical, but stable, condition. It is believed to be the country's deadliest incident involving migrants to date, with those alive "freezing, wet, and have not eaten for several days."
The truck was carrying timber with migrants in concealed compartments, according to the Ministry of Interior.
Health minister Asen Medzhidiev told reporters: "There has been a lack of oxygen to those who were locked in this truck"; according to head of the National Investigative Service Borislav Sarafov, some had suffocated.
Police believe the migrants were from Afghanistan and were being transported to Serbia through a route used by Middle Eastern migrants to reach the European Union. Sarafov said the migrants had illegally entered Bulgaria through Turkey and, after two days in the woods, entered the truck near .
One of the arrestees had already been sentenced for human trafficking; official Atanas Ilkov told Reuters charges were pending further evidence.
In December, Austria and The Netherlands blocked Bulgaria's accession to the passport-free over a rise in asylum-seekers entering through the Western Balkans and concerns the government was not addressing crime, respectively.
Both Bulgaria and its northern neighbour Romania, whose entry was also opposed by Austria, lie on the Western Balkan route for immigration, which Bucharest disputes.
The EU's external border control agency reported 61,375 migrants entered along that route in 2021, largely through Bulgaria or Greece, to the EU via common destinations Croatia, Hungary, Romania or Serbia.
The Ministry of Interior reported over 12,740 migrants were detained in Bulgaria in the first nine months of 2022, and attempted border crossings from January through August doubled to 80,000 from 2021 figures. | 0 |
Article 1: Yesterday, German football club Bayern Munich announced their technical director Michael Reschke vacated his position. , who announced parting ways with their sporting director Jan Schindelmeiser on Friday, recruited Reschke as their new sporting director.
59-year-old Reschke served as the technical director at the foreign=suppress|Bavarian club for the past three years, holding the position from July 2014. In an official statement issued by Stuttgart on Friday, the club's Supervisory Board made a "unanimous" decision to sack their sporting director Schindelmeiser. The board's chairman Wolfgang Dietrich said,
Bayern Munich's CEO de|German language|Ich bedanke mich im Namen des FC Bayern München für die hervorragende Arbeit, die Michael Reschke in den vergangenen drei Jahren für den FC Bayern geleistet hat. Er hat mit seinem Fachwissen, seiner Professionalität und seinem Netzwerk einen wichtigen Beitrag zum Erfolg des FC Bayern geleistet. Ich wünsche ihm alles Gute für seine Zukunft.|On behalf of FC Bayern München, I’d like to thank him for the tremendous work he’s done for FC Bayern over the last three years. He’s made an important contribution to our success with his expertise, professionalism and network. I wish him all the best for the future.
On Friday, Reschke requested termination of his contract with the German giants, which was valid for another year, until June 30, 2018.
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* Article 2: On Monday, Qatar-based news network Al Jazeera's Acting Director General Mostefa Souag said 's actions were "alarming and worrying" after the US-based messaging and media sharing platform blocked their channel from the discover publisher section in Saudi Arabia, following a request from the Saudi government. The block was introduced on Sunday, and the Saudi government accused Al Jazeera of content violating cyber crime laws of the kingdom.
Mostefa Souag said Snapchat's action "sends a message that regimes and countries can silence any voice or platform they don't agree with by exerting pressure on the owners of social media platforms and content distribution companies. This step is a clear attack on the rights of journalists and media professionals to report and cover stories freely from around the world".
A spokesperson of Snapchat's parent company, Snap, Inc., on Sunday, said, "We make an effort to comply with local laws in the countries where we operate". Al Jazeera's Snapchat content outside the discover channel can be accessed by Saudis. Snap, Inc. said the channel's content is available in fourteen Middle Eastern countries.
Al Jazeera's website was blocked in Saudi Arabia and the UAE in late May, amid controversy over remarks allegedly made by Qatar. Four countries, Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE broke their diplomatic ties with Qatar for allegedly supporting "extremists". Accused by those four nations of funding militant groups, Qatar was issued with a list of thirteen demands, including shutting down Al Jazeera, to lift the sanctions. In July, Egypt foreign ministry announced citizens of Qatar could no longer travel to Egypt without a visa, ending the visa-free travels to the country for Qataris. However, a spokesperson of the foreign ministry said those measures would not apply to Qatari students studying in Egyptian public universities, nor to partners or children of Egyptians.
Al Jazeera's head of Incubation and Innovation Research, Morad Rayyan, said, "We are urging them Snapchat to review the decision that was made. They were the ones who invited us to be one of their news partners for the region."
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Article 1: A bomb exploded at 7:24 pm on Tuesday at the PayPal headquarters, a subsidiary of eBay, located in San Jose, California, causing the evacuation of employees from the building. Authorities stated that the explosion was "not an accident." Spokespeople for eBay said that the incident was "isolated" and that there were no injuries or deaths reported.
"It's definitely not an accident. Everything else there is accounted for. This was not any kind of accident or malfunction," said San Jose Police Sgt. Nick Muyo. He added that authorities have yet to find any kind of explosive device or material.
"We believe this is an isolated incident. We're working closely with local authorities. We have everything under control," said Amanda Pires, a spokeswoman for the PayPal division of the company.
The blast was seen from the street and was located in an area where workers take breaks. The initial damage reported was a broken window near the blast site.
Fire officials do not yet know the specifics of the bomb's makeup.
"Whatever it was, it disintegrated. Whatever caused this was pretty strong," said San Jose Fire Department Captain Jose Guerrero.
The San Jose Police are working with agents from the Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Bureau (ATF) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), but it is reported that the San Jose Police are in charge of investigating the blast. There are no suspects at this time. Article 2: "Pro-life" banner at the Polling station set up in Emmanuel Catholic Church in Delray Beach, Florida
At its official launch in Washington DC yesterday, the Appignani Humanist Legal Center (AHLC) announced its filing of a lawsuit in Florida challenging the use of a church as a polling place during the recent U.S. midterm elections. The AHLC is representing Jerry Rabinowitz and the action is against Arthur Anderson in his capacity as supervisor of elections for Palm Beach County. But the organization indicates that more lawsuits in other states are expected to follow—all being part of an effort to show that churches are improper polling places because they cannot be religiously and politically neutral and because their use is subject to widespread abuse.
“Churches are currently the most common polling location in America” according to James Hurley, the lead attorney handling the case. Speaking at yesterday’s press conference, Hurley noted that while some churches cover or remove religious symbols in those parts of their facilities used as polling places, not all do so, nor is the practice required everywhere. “When asked, the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Office said there was no rule requiring removal of such religious icons,” Hurley added.
Voting booths at the polling station
Rabinowitz’s complaint is that, because he was assigned to vote at Emmanuel Catholic Church in Delray Beach, Florida, he found it necessary when entering the polling place to “walk past a church-sponsored ‘pro-life’ banner framed by multiple giant crosses before even entering the church” to vote. This caused him to be “extremely upset” regarding the religious setting of the polls. According to Hurley, “Rabinowitz observed many religious symbols in plain view” in the voting area. They were “surrounding the election judges and in direct line above the voting machines. These objects included a sign declaring that ‘Each of Us Matters to God,’ multiple crucifixes, a sign that says ‘God, I Make a Difference,’ a large copy of the Lord’s Prayer and a Hail Mary, and a large poster of the Ten Commandments.” When Rabinowitz objected and “asked election officials to remove or cover them for the remainder of the voting” officials allegedly refused to do so.
“This is clearly a violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution,” Hurley concluded, because it “has the primary effect of advancing religion.”
Also speaking at the press conference were the president and executive director of the American Humanist Association, the organization behind the new legal center, and Heidi Bruggink, the center’s legal coordinator. Speaking of the AHLC in general, Bruggink reported, “Our attorney roster includes many accomplished and prominent nontheistic attorneys, including Jim McCollum, Wendy Kaminer, and Michael Newdow.” These three are the most famous members of a legal team that “now consists of twenty-seven committed lawyers supported by several law students” and others.
The litigation challenging churches as polling places is a result of volunteer action nationwide by members of the American Humanist Association. “We put out a call to our members whose polling places were churches, asking them to report what they saw,” said the organization’s president, Mel Lipman. And this is what led to the Florida case and others that are expected to follow. | 1 |
Article 1: Wembley Park stn roundel.JPG|left|thumb|Wembley Park is the nearest connecting station of the Undergound to Wembley Stadium and Wembley Arena.
In the United Kingdom, the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) began a work stoppage at 19:00 BST (18:00 GMT) today after last-minute talks over pay, jobs and disciplinary issues broke down. The stoppage is expected to last 48 hours and could leave millions of travelers without transportation.
Sky News says that there are fears that the strike may affect fan transportation for the England national football team's 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier match against Andorra at Wembley Stadium tomorrow. Football Association (FA) chief executive Ian Watmore announced that the game would continue as planned at 20:15 BST (19:15 GMT) and encouraged spectators to arrive at the stadium early. The stadium gates will now open at 17:45 BST (16:45 GMT).
No extra transport is being put on and overground trains will not stop at Wembley, and car parking and park-and-ride facilities are unavailable at the ground. Fears of lack of transportation raised the possibility that the game would be forced to play behind closed doors without the team's supporters.
Watmore said that refunds will be available for supporters that do not attend the game. Last week, the FA decided to halt ticket sales at 70,000 in anticipation of a possible strike. Wembley Stadium can accommodate 90,000 fans for football matches.
In years past, the RMT has been known to clash with the London Underground and its privatised contractors Metronet and Tubelines.
On June 5, London Underground offered staff a four-year pay deal or a two-year deal which they called an "above inflation pay rise". However, the RMT is seeking a 5% pay raise and a commitment to no compulsory redundancies.
The English national football team currently leads their group in the World Cup qualifying with 18 points and a 6–0–0 record. Andorra currently has no points and has lost all six of their matches. Although Andorra has been eliminated from competing in the 2010 World Cup, England is still competing for better placement. Article 2: Giri.A2010295.0655.250m.jpg|thumb|left|Satellite image of Cyclone Giri approaching Myanmar
At least one person is dead and many more are missing as UTC), according to officials. Giri strengthened just before making landfall in the capital of the Sittwe, according to local media. An offical reported that a woman was killed in Minpyar when a tree collapsed, but he had not heard of anymore deaths yet. It was also reported that 100 fishermen are missing after the storm caught them in the northeastern .
The hardest hit area was the coastal town of Kyaukphyu, which suffered power loss and destruction of its seawall. A worker reported that about 70% of the city had been destroyed and there were 60,000 people who were in need of help, however no deaths were reported. "Fishermen and people there have had time to move to safer places as disaster measures were already in place," he said. "Our office in Kyaukphyu was destroyed by a falling tree... we have had problems getting transport and the latest data but are trying to reach the affected areas as soon as possible."
Giri also produced wave heights of 7 to 8 meters (23-26 feet) which forced residents of St Martin's island and Teknaf to move to shelters. According to a resident of Sittwe, "the authorities warned us with loudspeakers yesterday to prepare for the cyclone, so people had time to move safer places." The strongest winds moved through the area on Saturday afternoon and then moved northeastward through the center of the country. Department of Meteorology and Hydrology stated that Giri is expected to weaken to a moderate tropical storm as it moves further inland.
'Full Wikinews coverage of the 2010 hurricane season'
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Article 1: The video features Lordi's new costumes, as pictured
Finnish theatrical hard rock band Lordi - who are known for their 'monster' personas - have released a music video for the single Bite It Like a Bulldog. The song rose to number one on the Finnish single chart.
The song is the lead single from Deadache, Lordi's new album, which is due for release later this month. The album's musical style is described as similar to the band's previous work in that it is melodic hard rock, but with a 'rougher' quality to it and stronger horror themes. The band's keyboardist previously compared some of the music to that of Rob Zombie.
The band have also introduced new incarnations of their costumes, as they do for the release of each album. According to the group's frontman, part of the aim for the video was to showcase these to the world for the first time. "The modern horror film classics such as The Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake and Hostel were the starting points and the influence for the visual look," he told MTV.
He also explained that the intention was to produce something different with the video. "We wanted to achieve something that breaks the tradition of Lordi videos... The idea was to have a video with a not-so-simple and easily understandable storyline. We wanted the clip to focus on the feeling of the song and the new, more grotesque look of the band." The video was directed by Limppu Lindberg, who has worked on graphic design with Lordi and directed videos for Finnish metal bands such as Children of Bodom and Norther.
The video's United States TV debut will be made tonight at 11pm on MTV2’s Headbangers Ball. Article 2: Tsai on April 15
A map indicating the Taiwan Strait median and aircraft flight paths near it
Taiwanese President Taiwan Strait.
The Associated Press reported that the drills were in response to Tsai's recent visit to the United States, during which she met with speaker of the US House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy. McCarthy was the highest ranking US politician to have met with a Taiwanese president on US soil.
In her statement, Tsai said "As the president, I represent our country in the world, whether it's a visit to allied countries or stopping through in the U.S. and interacting with our international friends. And not only has this been going on for years, it's the Taiwanese people's shared expectation". Tsai added, "But China used this as a pretext to start military drills, creating instability in the Taiwan Strait and region. This is not the attitude of a responsible major nation in this region."
China launched military drills on Saturday, which simulated strikes on Taiwan by carrier-based aircraft. The Chinese aircraft carrier Shandong|Shandong. According to the Joint Chiefs, Japan scrambled Air Self-Defense Force fighter jets in response. CNN reported that 35 aircraft of the (PLA) crossed the Taiwan Strait median line or entered Taiwanese air-defense identification zone.
The PLA released a statement in which it said the operation "comprehensively tested joint combat capabilities of its integrated military forces under actual combat situation." It also stated: "Forces in the command is ready for combat at all times, and will resolutely destroy any type of 'Taiwan independence' separatist or foreign interference attempts."
The US legalized unofficial relations with Taiwan in 1979 and requires the US "to provide Taiwan with arms of a defensive character." | 0 |
Article 1: On Monday, German football club Sebastian Rode from Bayern Munich on a four-year deal. By mutual agreement, the clubs kept the terms of signing undisclosed.
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Rode joined Bayern in 2014 on a four-year deal from Bundesliga appearences with the Bavarians, scoring three goals, and has also played eight German Cup matches. Rode won two back-to-back Bundesliga titles, and a UEFA Champions League matches for Munich and scored one goal.
Bayern München chairman de|German language|Sebastian Rode hat uns gebeten, ihn aus seinem Vertrag frei zu geben, weil er in Dortmund die Chance sieht, regelmäßig zu spielen|Sebastian Rode asked us to release him from his contract because he thinks he has a chance to play on a regular basis in Dortmund.
After the transfer, Sebastian Rode said,
*
* Article 2: Screenshot showing how youtube-dl is used to download a YouTube video in the public domain.
On November 16, code-sharing and hosting service GitHub re-enabled the public access to command-line. This move comes after Mitchell Stoltz, a Senior Staff Attorney of the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), sent a letter to GitHub on the behalf of youtube-dl's maintainers. The repository was previously blocked on October 23, after GitHub received a Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) take-down notice from the (RIAA).
Started in July 2008, youtube-dl is a free/libré open source software written in Python which can download videos from various websites. Citing alleged violation of 17 U.S. Code § 1201 Circumvention of copyright protection systems, RIAA's takedown notice had alleged youtube-dl was intended to circumvent the technological protection measures of streaming services and to redistribute music videos without authorisation. youtube-dl's source code had a number of unit tests to check if the software works in different circumstances or not. Some of the test cases included s of some copyrighted songs.
Portrait of Mitch Stoltz, EFF's atorney who countered the DMCA Claim.
In the letter to GitHub, EFF's attorney Stoltz said "This file contains series of automated tests that verify the functionality of youtube-dl for streaming various types of video. The youtube-dl source code does not, of course, contain copies of these songs or any others ... the unit tests do not cause a permanent download or distribution of the songs they reference; they merely stream a few seconds of each song to verify the operation of youtube-dl. Streaming a small portion of a song in a non-permanent fashion to test the operation of an independently created software program is a ." The letter stressed "youtube-dl does not decrypt video streams that are encrypted with commercial DRM technologies".
The URLs to copyrighted songs were removed from the source code on November 16, and replaced with a test video that uploaded on YouTube by Philipp Hagemeister, former maintainer of youtube-dl. Philipp Hagemeister had previously spoken about the takedown with Wikinews.
youtube-dl comes with a small web-browser would behave while receiving video data from the server. The script has "extractors" for various websites to handle videos from different sources. "Any software capable of running JavaScript code can derive the URL of the video stream and access the stream, regardless of whether the software has been approved by YouTube", the letter read. It borrowed an analogy of J. R. R. Tolkien's for explanation: travelers come upon a door that has writing in a foreign language. When translated, the writing says "say 'friend' and enter." The travelers say "friend" and the door opens. As with the writing on that door, YouTube presents instructions on accessing video streams to everyone who comes asking for it.
Hours after the public access was restored, Sergey M, one of the maintainers of youtube-dl wrote on GitHub, "We would like to thank @github for standing up for youtube-dl and making it possible to continue development without dropping any features. We appreciate GitHub for taking potential legal risks in this regard. We would also like to thank EFF and personally Mitch Stoltz for invaluable legal help. We would also like to heartily thank our main website hoster Uberspace who is currently being sued in Germany for hosting our essentially business card website and who have already spent thousands of Euros in their legal defense."
Hours after GitHub restored the public access to the repository, Stoltz tweeted "I think of youtube-dl as a successor to the videocassette recorder. The VCR empowered people to take control of their personal use of free-to-air video, but it had to be saved from the . The same goes for youtube-dl. GitHub did the right thing here."
Why Can't You Download Videos on YouTube? How a 20-Year-Old Law Stops youtube-dl Users AND Farmers
youtube-dl is used by thousands of people around the world. Multiple Creative Commons-licensed and public domain videos on LiveLeak — a video-sharing platform for citizen journalism. Videos downloaded using youtube-dl are also used for the purpose of fair use, or for evidence.
When a copyright holder chooses to release their work, be it a photograph, a video, or audio, under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license, they allow everyone to freely own, share or modify the work as long as the reusers properly attribute the author of the work. YouTube also hosts many audio and video recordings in the public domain which can be used for any purpose without any restrictions.
In the blog post announcing "youtube-dl is back", GitHub said, "Although we did initially take the project down, we understand that just because code can be used to access copyrighted works doesn't mean it can't also be used to access works in non-infringing ways. We also understood that this project's code has many legitimate purposes, including changing playback speeds for accessibility, preserving evidence in the fight for human rights, aiding journalists in fact-checking, and downloading Creative Commons-licensed or videos."
GitHub also announced any new 1201 takedown notices will be "carefully scrutinised by legal experts" to reject "unwarranted claims", and said it will side with software developers if the claims are ambiguous. The announcement also mentioned GitHub Trust and Safety team would treat developer's tickets as a "top priority". GitHub also pledged donation of USD 1 million for developer defense fund "to help protect open source developers on GitHub from unwarranted DMCA Section 1201 takedown claims".
GitHub had blocked public access to many forks of youtube-dl upon receiving the DMCA notice in October. At that time, Wikinews noted public access was not yet restored for the forked repositories listed in RIAA's copyright notice and was still displays "Repository unavailable due to DMCA takedown".
During the period when GitHub had disabled public access for the repository, Sergey M had been developing youtube-dl and hosting it on , another code-sharing and hosting site. However, since GitHub has restored public access of youtube-dl, Sergey M has made the GitLab repository private.
After this, Wikinews reached out to Richard Stallman, the founder of Free Software Foundation, who has been highly critical of DRM (digital rights management, the subject of the DMCA) for many years now, to discuss the harms of DRM and DMCA 1201.
Well, DRM as I consider it, stands for digital restrictions management. It stands for system functionalities designed to restrict users in their use of copies of works. It's an injustice. It is a system of giving, generally, the more powerful additional power over everyone else. They who implement DRM like to say that this is a matter of protecting rights, but it's really a matter of protecting power. That power is an injustice and it should not exist.
Interview with Stallman about the harms of DRM and DMCA 1201.
'What do you think of the Recording Industries Association of America's DMCA take down notice against youtube-dl?'
Oh. Well it was, as I understand it, it was entirely a distortion of the law. And the Electronic Frontier Foundation explained why that was so. And I believe that's why GitHub put it back up again. But I'm more concerned with the morality of it than the legality of it. And basically it was a system
of oppression. But that's what the DMCA was mainly there to achieve: Make it easier to repress.
'Why was the DMCA introduced?'
Well of course I don't know the motives. I can only try to guess. But in general, the bad things in the DMCA give more power to publishing companies and secondarily occasionally to authors and artists to stop people from sharing. Now that was visible here it was to stop people from sharing youtube-dl. But the DRM portions of the DMCA were designed to stop people from breaking the digital handcuffs that companies place on them.
So before 1998, companies tried implementing DRM and people who didn't like being handcuffed by DRM implemented ways to break the handcuffs. The DRM... the DMCA made that much more difficult and it's been followed by hardware designed to restrict the people who use it — the people who supposedly buy it — are forbidden to change the parts of it that are designed to restrict them.
'Is the existence of DRM necessary for the DMCA to serve its purpose?'
Well, if the purpose is to repress, then yes, the DMCA; a part of the DMCA: because the DMCA says many different things. So there are two parts of the DMCA that are pertinent here. There's the part that sets up the takedown system and then there's a part about DRM and forbidding the distribution of any equipment to break DRM. So you you better say which one you mean because there's so much else in the DMCA.
The large goal of the DMCA is basically to stop people from sharing. And both of those parts of the DMCA serve the purpose of stopping people from sharing. I believe sharing copies of published works should be lawful and any law designed to stop that — any law against that — is an attack on society.
So if the goal is to to divide people and stop them from sharing, well DRM certainly contributes to that goal.
'Is the DRM really harmful for an independent society — a society which is not controlled by a select few companies.'
Oh, well DRM tends to increase the control of certain areas of society by companies, and especially large companies. You see, a truly effective DRM scheme typically involves getting everyone to follow the same standard to restrict people so there are no exceptions. They need something like a monopoly. If there were effective competition — competition between systems and practices that are
diverse — then people would find ways to get copies without DRM. But what happens instead is a DRM conspiracy is set up whereby all the publishers start using — although they're supposedly competing and may in fact be competing in some other sense — in regard to their use of DRM, they're all the same. So just about everyone publishing recorded videos at one point switched to DVDs. The DVDs were designed to have DRM. It's all the same DRM system. And they were all basically the same player system.
And it means that basically competition does people no good. You can't find a publisher that's publishing the same things but without DRM: they're all restricting you the same. So if you are completely firm in your hatred of DRM like me you say well I just won't buy any such thing. But if you're not so firm you'll probably surrender and go along with the restrictions of the system that they've switched to, which at that time meant DVDs. And then, because people had found ways to break the DRM of DVDs, another sort of monopolistic system for DRM was designed and that was . And you'll notice that all sorts of video publishing companies started publishing on Blu-ray discs. Well that was one single technical standard with the same DRM. And they all used the same DRM implementing disc players for Blu-ray discs. So they have a chance of success when they avoid competition. If there were enough competition, some publishers might start saying, "Hey we'll publish without the DRM." My understanding is, you can't write a Blu-ray disc that doesn't have DRM. I've been told you can't make and sell Blu-ray discs that anyone can copy. That was one example of a change for the worst compared with DVDs. You can write DVDs that don't implement the DRM.
'What are some of the ways DRM mistreats the users without them actually knowing about it?'
Well, when DRM mistreats you, you'll notice. You know, if you can't copy the contents into a file on your disk you'll notice. So there are many malicious things that programs can do to users without users knowing for instance spying on users. It could have a back-door. And unless you notice the use of the back door, you can't tell. But DRM is one thing that you can tell.
'How according to you should the laws concerning should be applied?'
I'm afraid that question is fundamentally confused by use of the vague over-generalisation "intellectual property". Are you talking about ?
'No, I'm talking law specifically for Intellectual Property Protection.'
Sorry, you don't understand. The term "intellectual property" is applied to many different kinds of laws. For instance, patent laws. When you ask that question whether you know it or not, you're asking about patent laws. That term is also commonly applied to trade secrecy. So whether you know it or not, your question is asking about trademarks, which really just you know those are just names. And the trademark law just says what that you can register a trademark and then other people can't call their products by that name. So whether you knew it or not your question was asking about those laws too. There are also plant variety monopolies, which are not the same as patents, and you were asking about those laws too. And there is also copyright law. So whether you knew it or not, you were asking about copyright law. And there are others I don't even know what all of them are. Because there's so many and they're all different. And you were asking about all of those laws at once because you said "intellectual property".
I recognised about 20 years ago that that term "intellectual property" reliably causes confusion because it asks about so many different laws at once and these laws are totally different; they apply to different areas; they have different purposes. They're designed to achieve different things but that term "intellectual property" treats them as if they were all minor variations of the same thing and they're not.
So every time you use that term, you're causing yourself to be confused and other people who think your question or statement is meaningful will get confused too. So I decided to reject that term completely because I want people to understand the differences between these various laws and they can't understand that until they realize that these laws are different.
Can you try to make your question specific enough that I could answer it?
'There are a lot of complaints which try to hide behind these IP laws in order to protect the software.'
They hide behind the term "intellectual property" to prevent it from becoming clear which law they're talking about and what the issue is in the case. But actually to speak of "protecting software" there's another sneaky point there. What does it mean to "protect software"? Prevent it from being destroyed? Prevent it from being erased? Protect normally means — to something means — to stop it from being destroyed or damaged or ruined. So for instance, if somebody threatens to break a DVD, well a DVD of software, and you "stopped" the person from destroying the disk, that would be protecting software, right? That's protecting software by the usual meaning of the word "protect".
When in that kind of question when they say protect, it's bogus. So I would say to them "What do you mean by that? What exactly is the thing you're trying to stop?" I would refuse to take up the intentionally confusing terminology like protect software. I would insist on getting a concrete description of what you're trying to do. And then I could give a concrete response do you want to give a concrete description? Of course you're quoting the others, you're not saying that this is your goal. You're talking about others who say that this is their goal. And if they're speaking gobbledygook, well you can't tell what they really mean. I'm saying that when they use that terminology they are basically confusing people.
It's gobbledygook. It's not a real question. And I would refuse to try to engage with their gobbledygook. I talk about concrete questions that I can describe like should anyone be able to stop you from making a copy of something. And if you want we can make it more concrete than that but you'll have to say which concrete case you mean. The point is I don't believe that anyone should have the power to stop you from making a copy to give to your friend or to somebody you just met. And if somebody wants to try to argue for that we should give that power, well the onus is on per to demonstrate why person should have that power.
'A person who paid for a tool owns it and is used to modify as they wish, for example you do not like the color of your chair, paint it if your car's tire is flat, change it or ask a mechanic to help you with that, except for cases where there is a computer and usually a software involved.'
Yeah. Well I think you should have the same freedom to change the software. And that relates to the issue of free or software. I have fought for free software because I believe all users who are running programs should have the freedom to change those programs or get someone else to help change them. And that's why I've developed free programs and released them to give other people that freedom. And that's why I refuse to run non-free programs because they subjugate their users by stopping the users from changing those programs. It means that the users don't have control of their own computing. I consider that unacceptable so I don't accept it. I simply say I won't use that non-free software, take it away.
'But why is computer software treated differently than other tools? For example, if we take case of John Deere tractors.'
Oh well, morally, it shouldn't be. Morally, all software should be free. Users should always get the source code and they should be able to change it and publish modified versions so that others can get the benefit of their changes.
Now, I can tell you practically speaking why it is not treated the same way. It's because software was treated as a kind of written work. Written works were covered by copyright law. They generally were not tools of any sort, you looked at them. You didn't pick up a written work and turn something with it. Right it's not a tool in the same sense as a screwdriver is. And physical structures were treated legally different from collections of text which is what a program is. And so carrying forward those two existing practices, they ended up saying that programs were copyrighted and at this point the lobbying of the companies, some of which were already large in the 1980s, was enough to cause copyright law in the US to be interpreted in rather strange ways for software. For instance, companies started saying: this program is copyrighted and it's a trade secret. Now it used to be that copyright applied to published works and anything that's a secret is not published. If it were published it wouldn't be a secret anymore. But the companies lobbied and they were allowed to have it both ways. They could say the source code is a secret and the compiled executable is published. And so they could have the benefit of copyright law and trade secret law for the same work at the same time.
Now, if the people writing the laws had been thinking based on what is in the public interest, they might have said that's absurd but they were thinking about "how can I please these companies that will give me a job later. You know, once I'm not in office anymore, I want to get paid by companies". So they did things to please the companies which probably told them, "We'll have work for you later". That system is known as the revolving door between business and government and it's fundamentally a form of corruption, even though it's not necessarily illegal. But morally speaking it's corruption.
So what we ended up with, well, so we ended up with software that was copyrighted and the source code was secret and thus the company had two ways to restrict the users of that program. One was they couldn't get the source code so they couldn't change it really except by patching the binary and that's hard to do: it's hard to make a very big change by patching the binary. And at the same time it was copyrighted so they were forbidden to redistribute it. And if they so if they managed to patch the binary they were not allowed to share that with anybody else. And so the users were helplessly under the power of that company. That was the situation in the early 80s which led me to develop free software and start the free software movement. And meanwhile non-free software led to DRM. You see, in order for a program that's intended to restrict users to succeed in restricting users, it has to be secret. Or else there has to be something that stops the users from changing it, and stops them in some other way. Because, you know, if someone puts some shackles on you and you can then change the shape of the shackles so you can take them off your feet, they're not really effective shackles, are they?
'You see this is rather odd that a car manufacturer never stops the users from opening the bonnet and expect what is underneath or even change it.'
Well yes, actually with software they do exactly that. And that's basically what John Deere is doing with the tractors. Because now there are computers in the car or the tractor and the computers are running software. The software is an important part of the car or the tractor and that's what the supposed owner can't change. So when you see that, you get to see the evil of non-free software and I don't think they should be allowed to sell cars with non-free software in them. I think that they should be required to make the software free so users can change the programs.
'What changes to the current system do you propose?'
Well, that's rather complicated. The changes I propose in laws and the system of distributing for the legal system for publication. Basically I think all software should be free. Free as is in freedom of course. I don't mind if you charge money for a copy but the software that you distribute should always respect users freedom. However, I am against making it a crime to distribute a non-free program, simply because criminalising such things tends to fail to achieve its goal. I mean, look at for instance dangerous drugs, that it's a crime to sell but people just break those laws massively and meanwhile in the US hundreds of thousands of people, maybe more than a million are in prison for breaking those laws and yet people are still doing it in tremendous quantities. So that's the only reason I wouldn't want to make it a crime to distribute non-free software. But it shouldn't happen. For other kinds of works, however, we have to look at copyright and I would say that works that are meant to serve a practical purpose, such as textbooks, for instance, or reference works, they should all be free as in freedom also. However, for other kinds of works, such as artistic works and works of testimony, it's okay for those works to be copyrighted. But people should at least be allowed to non-commercially redistribute exact copies. So you should be allowed to be a good member of your community, which includes among other things making copies and sharing them.
Now, if you have a copy of something and your friend says, "hey could I have a copy of that?", of course you will want to share a copy that's the friendly thing to do.
'What do you think of DRM actively trying to stop the right to repair?'
Well, the right to repair is basically a small part of the freedom that free software gives. So of course I support the right to repair and anything that works against it is wrong. But I would go much further in the right to repair. I would say the software in your car, your tractor or your radio or whatever it might be should be free software. And that basically, that provides the right to repair because it means that the users of the product can study how it works and they can extract the knowledge needed to do the repairs and share that knowledge, you know write it down, publish it and that way all the users of the product will be able to repair it.
'What do you think of the companies today leasing their products or services as per the EULA and abusing DMCA and DRM to prevent the consumers from having control of the things they own?'
Leasing a product; if a company leases a product to you then you don't own it, however I would say that if you have the possession of the product for the long term, that's enough reason why the software in it should be free. So you should be free to change that software. Of course, maybe someday you terminate the lease and you return the product and they probably will restore the standard software inside it before they lease it to someone else.
'When I say product/services I meant the so-called software-as-a-service.'
Oh, software-as-a-service — it's too vague a term to mean anything. It's of interest perhaps to businesses for thinking about their strategies, but in terms of how they're treating customers it's too vague, it doesn't mean anything.
'I could call it service-as-a-software-substitute.'
Oh that's different, you see, though. That is a much more specific term. It doesn't cover as many different cases and that's why I use it because it's more specific, it's narrow enough that I can say something coherent about it. I can't really say anything about "software-as-a-service" because it's too broad, it's too varied. Service-as-a-software-substitute I can say something about because it is less varied. It means that the service consists of running a certain program for you. And my response is don't let someone else run it for you, run it yourself. If it's a free program and you run it yourself, you have control over it and that's the way it should be. If it's a free program, but you pay someone else to run it for you, then you don't really get control over what that program is doing, because it's running in a someone else's computer.
Of course, if it's a non-free program then even if you run it yourself you don't really have control. You don't have control over what it does, but you have more control if you were running it than if someone else is running it.
'So what do you mean when you say you own a copy of a software?'
Well, with free software, when you get a copy, you own it the same way you could own a chair. You buy a chair you own it. With a free software you buy a copy you own it. But with, say consider, for instance, some software package you might think that you're buying a copy, but the company will say you don't own it, you just have a license to run it under limited terms. Well I think that is mistreatment of the public. That's part of the reason why I won't ever use that software.
'Talking about software, what are the set of rights an owner of a software must have?'
What do you mean by owner of a program? Do you mean the developer, do you mean a user?
'Anybody who bought the software.'
Okay, so first of all, well, I would say since we're talking about the user of a program, that software should be free. And that means that the user, any user, gets the four essential freedoms: Freedom zero is the freedom to run the program however you wish for whatever purpose you have in mind. Freedom one is the freedom to study the source code of that program so they've got to give you the source and then change it so it functions the way you wish. Freedom two is the freedom to make exact copies and then give or sell them to others and freedom 3 is the freedom to make copies of your modified versions and give or sell them to others.
'You talk about reselling. Now it is completely okay if I had to resell a vehicle. But in case, if it came with a software, let's take example of Tesla.'
Oh well please be careful. You're using the term resell which is not a term I used. What I said is the freedom to make copies and then give the or sell those copies to others. Now that's not reselling in the usual sense of that word. Because what I'm talking about involves making more copies. With a free program, you have the right to copy it and give or sell the copies. You also have with a free program you have the right to change the code and then copy that and give or sell copies.
So this is a rather firm stand. It's not the same thing as you bought a car and you sell the same car to somebody else.
'Should that right also be protected for the free software. If I get a copy of the software, should I be allowed to give that copy to someone else permanently? Let's say I bought it on a DVD and I would give that DVD to someone else, me not having the copy at all.'
Well, that I expect is lawful nowadays although there are some that will try to make you sign a contract and won't let users get copies without that. And that is an additional level of oppression. But I'm going far beyond that. I'm not just saying you should be allowed to resell the same copy. I'm saying you should have the freedom to copy it to, make more copies.
'So while we are speaking about selling the exact the copy itself now consider this the Amazon Kindle. It comes with the account tied to the Amazon account. If I were to give it to someone else the books would not transfer.'
Well, that's one of the injustices of DRM. This is one of the reasons I would never use an Amazon eBook, and I never have. No company should know what books you have. No company should be able to stop you from giving those books or selling those books to someone else. And if the book is digital, that means it is possible to copy it so no company should be able to stop you from non-commercially copying and redistributing those books. If you have a book and I would like a copy of it and you wish to copy it, you should be allowed to copy it for me. You shouldn't have to, but if you feel like to, you know it might be a lot of trouble and you'd say "I'm sorry, I'm too busy", but if you want to do it and suppose it's easy, then you should be allowed to do it. So I'm not just against the specific method, which is DRM, I'm against the goal that it is ostensibly meant to achieve — that goal shouldn't be achieved by anything. People should be free to share.
'Why do you think the EULA exists?'
Oh, well you mean why do companies impose EULAs on programs. Well they want to restrict people. They're trying to subjugate users. They have many ways of doing that. I have never agreed to any EULA.
'You know the analogy that I prefer for DRM is think of a car that you just purchased. The seller tells you that 'if it breaks down, come bring it to me and I'll fix it for you'. One day you realise that it's not working. Turns out the exhaust pipe has some blockage in it and if you try to fix that now the seller tells you, "just because you did that now not only I'm not going to fix if the car breaks down I won't even let others fix it for you".'
I would say I don't think they are similar. They're not really analogous. I would say that restriction on a car is comparable to the restrictions on proprietary software regardless of DRM. You know any non-free program because typically it's impossible for you to fix it because they don't give you the source code. Even if you are an authorised user, you can't have the source code for most non-free programs. The source code's not released at all. So you can't fix it yourself. Now these various situations they're related but they're not closely analogous. They're not the same thing going on in these different fields. They're often somewhat different and both evil but not in exactly the same way.
'How has the software distribution changed over the decade specifically in the rights that the users had?'
Well, non-free software started to exist in the 1960s at least maybe in the 1950s. But in the 1970s free software almost ceased to exist — all the software with small exceptions was proprietary, non-free. And it was in the 1980s that I launched the attempt to re-establish free software and to liberate users.
'What are the problems with the DMCA 1201 which is circumvention of copyright protection measures?'
Well that basically the worst part of that is the complete prohibition on distributing things that — tools that can break DRM. So for instance, anything that could access the video on a DVD or a BluRay disc is forbidden unless some company gives permission for it. I'm not sure which company is allowed to give permission for it. But basically you can't get permission for that so it has to be an underground device, one that is circulated without permission — a forbidden tool.
'What are the modifications that you would propose for the DMCA laws regarding anti-circumvention?'
I would eliminate them entirely. I might make — I might go further, yeah, I would go further and say that making or selling or leasing or importing what is it making, importing, selling, or leasing any product with DRM is a crime.
'Is the Free Software Foundation, SF Conservancy and the Electronic Frontier Foundation aware of and working with any senator to sponsor a bill for these changes?'
I don't know what those other organisations are doing. I don't think the Free Software Foundation has contacts so high in government. You know, opposition to anti-circumvention existed around 20 years ago but it mostly got crushed what happens is most people will not continue to oppose the law once it has existed for some number of years. It's too easy for people to say "well we lost that one, now what battle are we gonna fight?" But people like me, we never give up.
DRM is evil and since I will never accept a copy of anything with the DRM, I have to fight against DRM.
'What are some of the ways a digital publisher can sell copyrighted works...?'
The words you are using, I will not accept. I'm not going to answer that question because to do it I would have to accept the concept of piracy and the concept of protected and I will not. I refuse to use them. When people, when they say piracy what they mean is sharing. It's a smear term to insult people who share. I will not smear sharing. I think sharing is good and stopping people from sharing is evil. Now I when they say protected, what they really mean is restricting. And I think that's bad. However I am in favor of supporting artists better. The existing system changes so as to support artists less and less. Now this has become a scandal in the field of music as the streaming disservices pay musicians so little when streaming their music that the musicians are basically going broke. What this shows by the way is the hypocrisy of the copyright system which ostensibly exists to support the artists. But in fact it supports businesses that screw the artists.
Well, instead of trying to fix that system I say let's replace it and in the article in the page I told you about — copyright versus community, I propose two different two alternative systems to support artists. So take a look at it.
'How should artists and publishers who sell their art (music, artwork, literature) in a digital form sell it without imposing DRM, without worrying about one individual paying for it, an redistributing it to a larger audience, non-commercially?'
You must accept that people will do this, because it would be wrong to try to stop them.
'How do you think the browsers are affected by implemented by w3c allowing EMEs Encrypted Media Extensions to exist?'
You mean allowing DRM in browser? Well, basically what that means is free browsers cannot support the entire web standards. The DRM is something that only non-free browsers can do. So you have to decide do you want freedom or do you want to surrender to DRM and access the DRM covered works. For me the choice is clear. I won't accept a copy of a DRM infected work. But the danger is that is will we be able to keep free browsers going at all.
'I believe in the announcements Mozilla mentioned how they had to choose between either supporting DRM or otherwise giving up on their...'
Yeah, well that's basically that's how these schemes are set up. Most users don't understand freedom. They have superficial short-term desires. They want to get copies. So if a conspiracy of publishers — and that's effectively what it was all, people don't like to think of it that way — if a conspiracy of publishers says "we're all going to publish using this scheme to restrict you, so if you want to get anything from of the kind of work that we publish DRM will be your only way", people will say all right we'll accept the DRM. And then they push browser developers like Firefox and stores and so on into handling the DRM subjugated tools and products except for people like me who say, "No thanks, I don't want any of those at all ever".
Logo of GNU General Public License v3. GPLv3 was released in 2007 and has stance against patents and forbids "circumvention of technological measures".
'Was the GNU GPLv3 rather too late to prevent damages of DRM?'
I'm afraid so. I'm afraid so. Although of course, we don't know what would have happened if history had been different. You can only speculate about that.
'Is there any scenario where DRM is morally justifiable?'
Not that I can imagine. The users should be, first of all DRM means non-free software designed to stop people from doing things with copies of published works. I don't think users should be stopped from copying and changing and sharing published works. For art, they don't have to. I don't think users have to be permitted to distribute modified versions. But they must be permitted to non-commercially share copies and DRM always prohibits that.
'Are you aware of snaps and flatpaks that are used to install applications on GNU/Linux?'
I've heard of it and I know that they can be used to install non-free software which of course it's foolish to do. You shouldn't trust a non-free program. But yes you can install non-free software. That has always been true and the reason is with free software ultimately you can do whatever you want. There's no way to stop you. So a free operating system always permits you to install non-free programs.
'The applications, which would otherwise be available in the distribution repository. Now, the software developers are just moving towards...'
That's a bad thing. That's a bad thing. It's a foolish thing. It's hard to trust these snaps and flatpaks. And not only that, but those platforms distribute non-free software, so it's a bad idea to point to them at all. And in addition, it means that there aren't multiple -- you know with with distributions, as distributions package a program they will look at the program and thus they can fix things, if they see anything bad they can change it. And thus, this is part of how users collectively maintain their control. I've never installed a snap or a flatpak. And I don't think I want to. I wouldn't. I don't trust it. How do I know whether that flatpak includes some non-free software. How could I check? I don't think they're designed to let people check. They're not designed for anyone to be able to build the program. As far as I know, I could be mistaken but if all everybody does is just install the binaries, in the flatpak. Nobody's building it, how does anybody know if the complete source is available.
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Article 1: left
A Virginia man and Afghan national, Awais Younis, was arrested and charged on December 6 for making threatening communications and is currently being subjected to a mental evaluation which was ordered by a Judge during a hearing on December 9. Younis allegedly revealed his plans on the social networking site Facebook and is scheduled for a second hearing on December 21. The unsealed court documents came to the attention of news media today.
Federal authorities said that Younis told the FBI's witness on Facebook how to construct a pipe bomb and "what type of shrapnel would cause the greatest amount of damage". The FBI arrested Younis after an informant alerted them about his plans.
According to an FBI statement Younis said that he could hide a pipe bomb under a sewer head in Georgetown and place pipe bombs under the third and fifth metro cars, which contain "the highest number of commuters on them", without being noticed. However, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia, Peter Carr, assured the public that there is no danger, "The public should be reassured that activities prior to his Younis' arrest were carefully monitored and that there is no threat against Metrorail or the general public in the Washington, D.C., area"
Younis is also known as Sundullah Ghilzai and Mohhanmed Khan and is either 25 or 26 years old.
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* Article 2: On Tuesday, the Governor of the US state of Arizona genetic abnormality.
Senate Bill 1457, which stalled twice for criticism by opponents of abortion, passed both chambers of the Republican-controlled Arizona Legislature last week in a , amended twice along the way to alleviate concerns by two hesitant Republicans.
The bill makes it a Class 6 felony, the least severe, to seek or perform an abortion "because of a genetic abnormality of the child", defined as "the presence or presumed presence of an abnormal gene expression in an unborn child", but not a "severe fetal abnormality" considered "incompatible with life." Intimidating someone to get an abortion and soliciting or accepting monies to finance an abortion for this purpose has been made a Class 3 felony.
Pro-abortion rights Rally for Reproductive Rights in Chicago, Illinois on May 23, 2019.
The bill also allows the unborn child's father or, in case the mother is under 18, a maternal grandparent to sue, as well as including the applicability of state law to "an unborn child at every stage of development", which Senator Melody Hernandez (politician)|Melody Hernandez wrote in a submitted minority report "would open up the potential for prosecutors to charge persons including the pregnant individual whose conduct results in a woman having a miscarriage with murder, manslaughter or child endangerment."
Other provisions of the bill include a prohibition on the distribution "via courier, delivery or mail service" of abortion-inducing drugs, a ban on any public educational institution from performing or aiding non-life saving abortion, a ban on the use of public or tax monies paid by the state or students for university research involving foetal remains or , or any state money towards organisations providing abortion care, and requiring all foetal remains to be buried or cremated.
reported Ducey is an anti-abortion rights governor who ran on the Republican ballot and has never vetoed anti-abortion legislation. In a statement, Ducey said, "there's immeasurable value in every single life — regardless of genetic makeup ... We will continue to prioritize protecting life in our preborn children, and this legislation goes a long way in protecting real human lives." The news release, originally published on his website also read, "with this legislation, Arizona remains among the top pro-life states in the nation."
Senator Center for Arizona Policy said in her own news release, according to the Associated Press "today, Arizonans win."
Representative tweet, "I'm disappointed to see Arizona moving in this direction, ignoring the needs and desires of doctors, women, and families for an extreme political agenda." Representative and | 1 |
Article 1: Jo Jorgensen
Professor of South Carolina, the U.S. Libertarian Party's 2020 presidential nominee, answered some questions about her campaign from Wikinews accredited reporter William S. Saturn.
Jorgensen is a psychology professor at South Carolina's 4th congressional district|South Carolina's 4th congressional seat in the United States House of Representatives. She finished the race in third place with almost 2.16 percent of the total vote. Four years later, the Libertarian Party tapped Jorgensen to be its vice presidential nominee. She joined a ticket with the late 1980 United States presidential election|1980 and would not be topped percentage-wise until 2012 when former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson attained 0.99 percent of the vote. Johnson bested that performance in 2016 as the party's presidential nominee for a second time, earning 3.27 percent of the vote, the highest percentage for the party since its 1971 inception.
For the 2020 nomination, Jorgensen navigated through a primary campaign that featured the short-lived campaigns of former Rhode Island governor Justin Amash of Michigan, the first sitting Congressman to be a member of the Libertarian Party. At the virtual Jacob Hornberger, performance artist Vermin Supreme and activist Spike Cohen, originally the running mate of Supreme, was picked to be the party's vice presidential nominee. Cohen spoke to Wikinews back in June. The Jorgensen-Cohen ticket has since secured ballot access in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
As a libertarian, an ideology that advocates for lesser government, both in the social and economic realms, Jorgensen's issue positions include a mix of traditionally liberal and conservative stances. She supports both LGBT rights and gun rights. She opposes the police state and the taxing authority equally. And, she supports an open immigration policy while arguing against the welfare state.
With Wikinews, Jorgensen discusses her background, COVID-19, her potential cabinet, gridlock, and an assortment of issues including climate change, foreign affairs, free speech, and race relations.
:: 'Jo Jorgensen': Declaration of Independence. I would, however, change the phrase, "that ," to "that all people are created equal"!
: 'How have your past experiences prepared you for the job of President?'
:: 'Jo Jorgensen': The most important preparation for the job of president is to learn that businesses and families and people everywhere are better off when they are free to run their own lives without government interference. My grandmother, who immigrated from Denmark, instilled in me a love of freedom when I was a child. Ever since, life has taught me, over and over, that government must be strictly bound to protecting our life, liberty and property - and nothing more.
: 'How would you describe your style of leadership? How does it compare to the leadership styles of President Donald Trump and former President Barack Obama?'
:: 'Jo Jorgensen': My leadership style is rooted in the principle, "first, do no harm." I will assemble a cabinet and staff that, with me, will scrutinize any proposal for use of government force for any purpose. That's the polar opposite of both President Trump, former President Obama, and his former Vice President Joe Biden|Joe Biden.
:: 'Jo Jorgensen': I would have made sure the bureaucrats at the CDC (Centers for Disease Control) and the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) did not block access to tests and treatments developed by the free market. Once it became clear that the primary danger is to people with , I would have used my to strongly advise that those people use masks, socially distance, and self-quarantine as needed to avoid contagion. I would have ended any emergency economic lockdowns and trusted people to take care of themselves and go back to work and school in a safe manner.
: 'How has the pandemic affected your campaign and your ability to reach out to voters?'
:: 'Jo Jorgensen': It has limited our in-person events to being mostly outside and socially distanced. That has obviously decreased the number of people able to participate in rallies and the ability of volunteers to execute a traditional ground game. On the positive side, it has tied people closer to their cell phones and computers and, we hope, increased our ability to reach people through social media.
Jo Jorgensen with supporter (50448798867).jpg|Jorgensen with a supporter wearing a facemask.
Jorgensen rally Durham 03.jpg|Jorgensen supporters during a rally in North Carolina.
Spike Cohen with supporters (50280639536).jpg|Spike Cohen with Jorgensen supporters in August 2020
Jo Jorgensen 2020 LNC 2.jpg|Jorgensen in July 2020.
: 'In 2016, Libertarian presidential nominee Gary Johnson, the former Governor of New Mexico, received about 3.28 percent of the popular vote, a record for the party. Based on your polling and general feeling on the ground, what percentage of the popular vote do you expect to receive in the 2020 election?'
:: 'Jo Jorgensen': As a popular former governor with another former governor as a running mate, who was also very popular with the media, our 2016 Libertarian ticket received unprecedented media coverage. As a result, they were polling double digits shortly after they were nominated. Those polling numbers declined as election day drew near. I started out with virtually no name recognition outside the Libertarian Party. Coming out of our (virtual, thanks to COVID) nominating convention, I was polling at one percent according to . That number has gone up and ranges from two to five percent in national polls. In addition, we are polling high enough in battleground states like Ohio, North Carolina, Iowa, Georgia and now Alaska to cover the spread between Biden and Trump.
::We have already won in the sense that Republicans and Democrats now pay lip service to libertarian ideas (lower taxes, bringing our troops home, ending the , etc.) to win votes. This shows that our ideas are becoming more and more popular. Unfortunately, the Ds and Rs betray those libertarian ideals - and those voters. We'll keep fighting until we make government much smaller than it is today - whether or not I, and other Libertarians, are elected. That is the ultimate victory.
Gary Johnson in 2018.
: 'During the 2016 campaign, Gary Johnson responded to a reporter's question about the Syrian city of Aleppo with "What is Aleppo?" This seems to be one thing people most remember about Johnson. If there's one thing the public will remember about you and your campaign, what do you want it to be? What do you expect it to be?'
:: 'Jo Jorgensen': I expect that it will be one of two things: That I am the only 2020 candidate who has credibly campaigned to bring the troops home and make America like one giant Switzerland, armed and neutral.
::Or that, when I hear politicians call for anchor=United States, I hear "VA for all." If there's one thing I want people to remember, it's this: We haven't had a free market in health care in over 100 years. As president, I will work tirelessly to remove government barriers to free market healthcare, so that it's a fraction of today's cost, much higher quality, and easily accessible to everyone.
:: 'Jo Jorgensen': A Jorgensen administration would call on talented, seasoned public policy analysts from institutions like the Reason Foundation, and others who are committed to the goal of a much smaller government to staff the cabinet and administrative agencies. We would also draw on the libertarians now holding office as Democrats and Republicans and those who show strength in particular areas of government.
: 'There is currently only one Libertarian in Congress, . He is not seeking re-election. If you win the election, the government will remain divided. How will you work with Congress to avoid gridlock and pass your agenda?'
:: 'Jo Jorgensen': My biggest tool will be my pen. I will refuse to sign any budget that is not in balance. I will require all Department heads to propose budgets that are smaller than the previous year. Some issues like cannabis decriminalization and criminal law reform already have enough bipartisan support that they will get passed with a presidential nudge. I will immediately pardon all non-violent federal drug war prisoners as well as whistleblowers like Edward Snowden and Julian Assange. As Commander in Chief, I will immediately begin bringing the troops home.
Justin Amash official photo (cropped).jpg|Libertarian Congressman Justin Amash.
Spike Cohen portrait 1 (crop 1).jpg|Vice presidential nominee Spike Cohen.
Edward Snowden 2013-10-9 (1) (cropped).jpg|Whistleblower Edward Snowden.
Julian Assange 20091117 Copenhagen 1 cropped to shoulders ITN.jpg|Whistleblower Julian Assange.
:: 'Jo Jorgensen': All federal subsidies to the energy industry, especially fossil fuels, should be eliminated. nuclear power will fare very well on a level playing field, cutting Article 2: McCarthy and Tsai meeting.
On Wednesday, Kevin McCarthy, speaker of the US House of Representatives, met with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen at the Simi Valley, California|Simi Valley, California.
McCarthy, a Republican, became the highest American official to meet a Taiwanese head of state on American soil since 1979, when the former began official relations with China.
During a press conference, McCarthy said: "The friendship between the people of Taiwan and America is a matter of profound importance to the free world and it is critical to maintain economic freedom, peace, and regional stability."
Representative tweeted an email she said Li Xiang, a Counsellor at the | 1 |
Article 1: Jerry Brown.jpg|left|125px|thumb|Candidate Edmund Gerald "Jerry" Brown, Jr., seen here, was the reigning Democrat nominee who won in the 2010 election for the position of governor of California.
Meg Whitman.jpg|right|125px|thumb|On the Republican side, Margaret Cushing "Meg" Whitman, seen in this picture, was the lead nominee for her party in the election, which she lost despite having spent $141 million to fund her campaign.
On Tuesday night, twenty-seven years after previously completing his second term as governor of California, candidate has again won the race for the position.
Attorney General Jerry Brown, of San Francisco, California, was the lead nominee for the Democratic Party, facing off against the lead nominee of the Republican Party Meg Whitman, of United States dollar|US$141 million to support her campaign. More than approximately $80 million of that was diverted to knocking out California Insurance Commissioner and also Republican candidate , of Houston, Texas, who was also running in the election but was defeated early in the campaign.
The election ended with only 42.2% popular support for Meg Whitman as contrasted with 52.8% of votes for Jerry Brown. A major issue that arose during the elections was the bad economy, something that many people cited as the reason for their votes. Some mudslinging, including an incident when an unidentified Brown supporter was found to have called Whitman a "whore", also ensued a few days before the night of the election took place in the Fox theater, according to Cnet.
When the night of the election came and the new governor of California announced, the former Jesuit seminary student gave his five-minute victory speech, showing optimism for the future of California and the state budget:
"I see California once again leading in renewable energy, in public education and openness to every kind of person, whatever their color is," Brown said. "I mean, we’re all God's children."
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* Article 2: Drew posing after the film.
On July 15, Wikinews attended the US general debut, and second general showing, of New York Post|anchor=Decider|Decider described as a coming-of-age comedy — in Los Angeles' Roy and Edna Disney/CalArts Theater, part of the LGBT film festival Vera Drew and Bri LeRose present.
This was director Drew's first feature film, but she previously edited and otherwise been employed on a variety of television productions.
Drew described The People's Joker as "autobiographical" for her, as the main character, whom she played, aspires to break into comedy and experiences gender transition, like Drew, becoming known as Joker the Harlequin, an comic and villain.
Cowriters Drew and LeRose took to the stage to answer questions from a moderator and the audience. Of military–industrial complex". On working with actor and puppeteer Yoda" who offered advice on this production.
The remaining cast declined to appear on stage in solidarity with an actors' strike.
Drew made final edits to The People's Joker minutes before boarding a plane for its debut at the 2022 Warner Bros., which did not make Batman character and universe as the vehicle for" her autobiographical purposes. The film had several subsequent private screenings.
Drew said her team was planning a distribution scheme for The People's Joker.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, LeRose commissioned Drew for US$12 to re-cut the Joker (2019 film)|Joker into a comedy. The duo eventually collaborated on a version including all prior portrayals of on film. This led to a script telling a fictionalized version of Drew's life, which became The People's Joker.
Outfest ran from July 13 to Sunday. | 1 |
Article 1: Strathclyde Police say the force has already made improvements in response.
in Scotland have apologised to the family of Diane Fallon and her daughter Holly after a report heavily criticised the force's handling of their killer — a known sex offender living next door.
Thomas Smith, now 28, had been given a six month jail sentence in 2006 after a sex attack on a ten-year-old girl. He had been living next door to the Fallons in a small village in for a year at the time of the murders in March 2009. Nobody in the village was aware he was a .
Smith sexually assaulted Diane Fallon, 43, and raped Holly, ten, before strangling them both. He also tortured them. A High Court judge in Glasgow ordered he serve at least 32 years of a life sentence, saying at the time Smith had "set a benchmark of depravity below which it is difficult to imagine any other human being sinking."
The new report, written by the Lothian and Borders Community Justice Authority's Robert Thomson, says Strathclyde Police made errors in their handling of Smith, who the police had "correctly" identified as "high risk" as he had attacked two different youngsters he did not know on the same day.
However, the report noted there was little in the way of justification given for this analysis. It also raised concerns that Smith's side of the story, which contained a denial, was given "plausibility" by the risk assessment and this may have "distracted" police officers responsible for dealing with him. This was "not helpful or necessarily good practice".
Other criticisms raised were that the police failed to properly consider whether Smith's new home was suitable for his status and lost chances to return him to custody — as may have happened had he been arrested over possible further violence against women and children. Had this happened, the report notes the murders may have been prevented. It found police found it difficult to monitor him, and the force's offender management unit had little oversight from management.
Thomson raised "great concern" in noting Smith's details were not all on the . Criticism was also aimed at the legislative situation, with sex offenders "increasingly aware of their rights and the limited powers the police have in relation to their management" and "Officers... personally discouraged from taking innovative action and... less likely to push the boundaries of their police powers in the established climate of litigation and complaint."
A total of 34 recommendations were made, including some to the Scottish government. Amongst them is a suggestion search warrants might not be needed when dealing with the homes and phones of sex offenders. Other proposals include improved information sharing and increased resources available to monitor convicts.
"We fully accept what the report says and we have made a number of changes since the murders and as a result of the review process," says Strathclyde Police Assistant Chief Constable George Hamilton. "Lessons have been learned and major improvements have been made." He says he has met with the family to discuss their report and offer a direct apology.
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* Article 2: UK chancellor announced his 2017 budget on Wednesday, which included a £2 billion pledge to social care and a tax hike on the self-employed. It was accused of breaking Conservative Party manifesto promises.
Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond, from file, 2016.
It was announced there will be a 2% increase in contributions for the self-employed, with chancellor Philip Hammond citing worries that people were choosing to become self-employed in order to pay lower taxes and his perception of unfairness in the different rates paid by employees and self-employees. There were accusations this change in policy goes against the manifesto promises the Conservative Party ran on in 2015, which promised four times that there would be no increase in national insurance rates. Conservative MP tweeted saying she believed these new measures would be unpopular as many would see them as unfair. The leader of the opposition, Jeremy Corbyn, claimed the new measures will not clamp down on people whose self-employment is just for tax benefits, instead causing problems for those legitimately self-employed, arguing that if they are to start paying similar tax rates to the employed then they should get rights such as statutory maternity pay. The think tank claimed, however, this increase is outweighed by other government policies and is, therefore, a good move.
In addition to this, the chancellor announced a £2 billion pledge to social care over the next three years, saying he was aware of the stress the ageing population is having on the NHS and social care. Liberal Democrat described the amount as "wholly inadequate", saying much more is needed to pay for an increase in care demands due to the ageing population. The lowest threshold at which shareholders pay dividend taxes is to be lowered from £5,000 to £2,000 claiming that the taxes for dividends provided "an extremely generous tax break for investors with substantial share portfolios". Other budget announcements include an additional £325 million for the NHS, £90 million transport spending for the North of England, £20 million to support campaigning against violence against girls and women and a slight increase in funding for the devolved governments.
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Article 1: Map of the initial Russian attacks on Ukraine as of February 24, 2022.
Russian troops began an invasion of Ukraine by firing missiles at several cities yesterday.
On state television, Russian President Vladimir Putin described this as the beginning of a "special military operation" in Ukraine with the aim of "the demilitarization and de-nazification of Ukraine" at 06:00 in Moscow, 03:00 UTC. After this announcement, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky imposed martial law nationwide.
Explosions of Russian missiles were heard in cities Kyiv, Kharkiv, Donetsk, Odesa and in the Donbas region with the aim of destroying Ukrainian military command centres. Gunfire was also heard near , Kyiv's main airport, and sirens were heard throughout the city.
Putin said that Russia had been left with no choice but to defend itself against what he described were threats from Ukraine after Russian-backed separatists in Donetsk sent a plea to Moscow to help stop alleged Ukrainian aggression. The claim was dismissed by the United States as Russian propaganda.
On Monday, Russia passed a bill recognizing the self-proclaimed Luhansk People's Republic in eastern Ukraine as independent states, followed by agreements of friendship, cooperation, and assistance with the republics.
United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres made a plea to Putin to stop the war "in the name of humanity" after Putin announced the military operation.
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has promised the West will respond "decisively" and that Putin had "chosen a path of bloodshed and destruction". The British Defence Secretary Liz Truss have also condemned the invasion, Truss adding they will "use every lever at our disposal to stop Putin in his tracks" and "nothing is off the table".
US President Joe Biden condemned the attack as "unprovoked and unjustified", adding that he will be meeting with G7 leaders today, and asserting the US and allies "will be imposing severe sanctions on Russia".
President of the European Commission Government of Russia|Kremlin would be held accountable.
Spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry said "all parties should work for peace instead of escalating the tension or hyping up the possibility of war", criticizing "those parties who were busy condemning others" for a lack of a supposed reaction.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg condemned Russia's "reckless and unprovoked attack" on Ukraine and said NATO allies would meet to tackle the consequences of Moscow's "aggressive actions". Article 2: Ben van Beurden.jpg|left|thumb|Van Beurden in Brazil on April 23, 2015.
Speaking at the Aurora Spring Conference in Shell plc|Shell CEO warned Europe may need to ration energy supplies in response to declining natural gas supplies from Russia.
He told attendants of the energy conference: "It will be a really tough winter in Europe", and warned the entire continent faces a "significant" rise in energy prices. He went on to say that in the worst case, Europe would need to ration its energy.
Some countries, including Bulgaria, Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands and Poland have already had their gas deliveries from Russia suspended for their refusal to pay in roubles, and there are concerns the pipeline to Germany may not reopen following maintenance work that started this week.
Last month, Germany moved to the 'alarm' stage of an emergency plan to deal with gas shortages. Italy has also reported shortages: local energy giant Gazprom last month. have warned that both countries would be forced to ration gas supplies if the Nord Stream 1 pipeline does not reopen as scheduled on July 21.
Europe's natural gas stocks are currently 62.6% full; the European Commission have mandated they should reach at least 80% capacity by November 1. There are warnings achieving this target will be difficult if disruption to the flow of Russian gas continues, including from European Union sanctions imposed over the invasion of Ukraine. | 1 |
Article 1: The financial leaders pose for a group photo.
In the midst of the intensifying global financial crisis, finance ministers and central bankers of the G7 nations – Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United States, and the United Kingdom – met in Washington, D.C. and released a joint statement.
With failures of large financial institutions in the United States, the crisis rapidly evolved into a global crisis resulting in bank failures in Europe and the Americas, and sharp reductions in the value of stocks and commodities worldwide. The crisis further lead to a liquidity problem and the de-leveraging of world assets, which further accelerated the problem. The crisis has roots in the subprime mortgage crisis and is an acute phase of the financial crisis of 2007–2008.
After the meeting, a joint statement was released with a commitment to "stabilize financial markets and restore the flow of credit." The statement outlined five steps to achieve these goals:
#Take decisive action and use all available tools to support systemically important financial institutions and prevent their failure.
#Take all necessary steps to unfreeze credit and money markets and ensure that banks and other financial institutions have broad access to liquidity and funding.
#Ensure that our banks and other major financial intermediaries, as needed, can raise capital from public as well as private sources, in sufficient amounts to re-establish confidence and permit them to continue lending to households and businesses.
#Ensure that our respective national deposit insurance and guarantee programs are robust and consistent so that our retail depositors will continue to have confidence in the safety of their deposits.
#Take action, where appropriate, to restart the secondary markets for mortgages and other securitized assets. Accurate valuation and transparent disclosure of assets and consistent implementation of high quality accounting standards are necessary.
"Central banks from around the world have acted together to provide additional liquidity for financial institutions, taking the necessary steps to support the global economy," said US Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson in a statement after the meeting.
"We have taken a lot of actions," said European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet. "My experience of markets is that it always takes a little time to capture the elements of the decisions taken."
The Governor of the Bank of England Mervyn King said: "Central banks will work together as we demonstrated this week, to ensure sufficient short term liquidity is provided to stabilise banking systems. But it is also vital that governments work together to ensure their banking systems are recapitalised to enable them to lend to finance spending in the real economy." Article 2: Julian Assange 20091117 Copenhagen 1.jpg|thumb|left|Julian Assange, founder of the whistle-blowers' website Wikileaks, is suspected of rape.
International police cooperation organization Interpol has put Julian Assange, founder of the whistle-blowers' website Wikileaks, on its most-wanted list after a court in Sweden announced he was wanted for alleged sex crimes. Wikileaks is this week releasing more than 250,000 secret "cables" between US diplomats.
Two weeks ago, Swedish authorities ordered the arrest of Assange for suspected rape, sexual molestation and illegal use of force. Interpol, the International Criminal Police Organization, yesterday released a "Red Notice" calling for Assange's arrest. Interpol stated that this type of notice is not an arrest warrant, but a request "to assist the national police forces in identifying or locating those persons with a view to their arrest and extradition."
The incidents are alleged to have occurred in August of this year, several weeks after Assange released 75,000 documents detailing US military actions in Afghanistan. "The background is that he has to be heard in this investigation and we haven't been able to get a hold of him to question him," said Marianne Ny, director of prosecution in Sweden.
It was first reported that he was suspected of rape later in August, when he described the allegations as part of a "smear campaign" against Wikileaks. Wikinews reported at the time that he said "the charges are without basis and their issue at this moment is deeply disturbing." A statement posted on Wikileaks' website after the charges were announced defended Assange. "We are deeply concerned about the seriousness of these allegations. We the people behind WikiLeaks think highly of Julian and he has our full support. While Julian is focusing on his defenses and clearing his name, WikiLeaks will be continuing its regular operations."
Assange's lawyer, Mark Stephens, said that the allegations against him were made after the two women he is alleged to have raped found out that he was in relationships with both at the same time. "Only after the women became aware of each other's relationships with Mr. Assange did they make their allegations against him," Stephens said in a statement.
Stephens added that he had not "received a single written word, at any time, in any form, from Swedish authorities on the Swedish investigation against our client," and he and Assange had only learnt about the case through reports in the media. "This is a clear contravention to Article 6 of the European Convention, which states that every accused must be informed promptly, in a language which he understands and in detail, of the nature and cause of the accusation against him," he added.
Assange is currently residing in an unknown location. It has been reported he has attempted to disguise himself by cutting and dying his hair. He told Forbes magazine recently that Wikileaks has obtained documents containing evidence of corruption within a major US bank. He has reportedly been paying in cash and with friends' credit cards.
Speaking about the release of the cables, he told : "US officials have for 50 years trotted out this line when they are afraid the public is going to see how they really behave." It was reported on Wednesday that Ecuador, a country which critically opposes US policies, has offered Assange residency.
Along with the arrest, Assange is facing mounting pressure in the US over the leak of the cables. A retired CIA agent, Peter King, said Wikileaks should be designated a "terrorist organisation," and called for Wikileaks and Assange to be prosecuted for the release.
On Monday evening, Hillary Clinton, US Secretary of State, condemned the publishing of the files, thought to be leaked by , who served as an intelligence analyst with the US Army before being arrested.
"It is an attack on the international community, the alliances and partnerships, the conversations and negotiations, that safeguard global security and advance economic prosperity," Clinton said. "There is nothing laudable about endangering innocent people, and there is nothing brave about sabotaging peaceful relations between nations on which our common security depends." She added that the US "deeply regrets" the leakage of the files.
HillaryPA.jpg|150px|thumb|Hillary Clinton, US Secretary of State, condemned the publishing of the files.
Speaking to Time magazine on the internet, Assange defended the release of the files. "It is not our goal to achieve a more transparent society, it's our goal to achieve a more just society," he said. He also confirmed that Wikileaks has obtained more classified material, saying:"We have a lot of source material that ... remains unpublished." Assange added that it was "very important" to him that "the law is not what, not simply what, powerful people would want others to believe it is."
Assange said in the interview with Time that all the documents had been reviewed and all names of informants had been redacted "carefully." He said: "They are all reviewed, and they're all redacted either by us or by the newspapers concerned." He also said that Wikileaks "formally asked the State Department for assistance with that. That request was formally rejected."
He was asked whether he was concerned that publishing the files could be considered . "Not at all. This organization Wikileaks practices civil obedience, that is, we are an organization that tries to make the world more civil and act against abusive organizations that are pushing it in the opposite direction," he said. "We have now in our four-year history, and over 100 legal attacks of various kinds, been victorious in all of those matters."
de:Interpol fahndet nach WikiLeaks-Gründer Assange
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Article 1: Explosion kills 42 miners in northern China; 27 missing
Forty-two miners are confirmed dead and 27 are missing, after an explosion at the Xishui Mine in Shuozhou, a city in China's Shanxi province.
Six rescue teams are working at the site to rescue the missing personnel, according to Liu Jiwen, an onsite rescue consultant. Two miners were rescued earlier in the day.
Xishui Mine is licensed to produce 150,000 tons of coal per year. But the mine was ordered closed in 2004 for safety violations.
"In defiance of the order, however, mine owners have restarted production this year," stated a province-level official.
Police have arrested the owners of the Xishui mine.
Zhang Baoshun, the governor of Shanxi province, is on the scene to oversee the rescue work and an investigation of the accident.
Twenty-two other miners were working at the nearby Kangjiayao mine at the time of the accident, although it is unclear if any of those miners were affected.
Thousands of miners die in mining accidents each year in China. Today's accident comes just one day after 19 coal miners were killed in a mining accident in the Sulongsi mine in Chongqing, and one month after the largest accident in recent history killed 214 miners, in Fuxin, Liaoning Province.
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Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators filled the streets of Taipei, Taiwan on Saturday, as several political parties, 500 civic groups, and President Chen Shui-bian voiced their opposition to the "anti-secession" law passed by the People's Republic of China last week.
The Associated Press and the Sydney Morning Herald estimated turnout at close to one million. Police spokesman Tan Szu-huai initially provided an estimate of about 300,000, but AP is reporting a revised police estimate of one million. Reuters news agency reports that organisers had hoped to attract one million people to the march.
"What do we want from China? Peace!" DPP lawmaker Bikhim Hsiao chanted with the crowd.
Hsiao told CNN, "This law essentially gives China a blank check to use force against Taiwan, and they are the ones legislating, they are the ones interpreting the law, and executing and implementing the law."
Protestors chanted "Oppose war, Love Taiwan" amongst what has been termed a "democratic carnival" in downtown Taipei. The "carnival" consisted of activities on different themes relating to Taiwanese national sovereignty and cross-straits relations.
Protestors attended from all over Taiwan, many braving arduous ten-hour or longer bus rides to Taipei.
Taiwan's former president Lee Teng-hui, the spiritual leader of the pro-independence TSU, and Premier Frank Hsieh, a member of the Democratic Progressive Party, are also taking part in the march.
Vice President Annette Lu is expected to make an appearance at the Presidential Office.
Taiwanese television station ETTV on its Taiwan Domestic Newshour and others are providing live coverage as the march and rally progresses.
At the time this story was filed, China's state-controlled Xinhua and People's Daily news agencies had no immediate comment about the march or the planned rally, but earlier today, Xinhua reported that on Friday, a Chinese expert "urged the Taiwan authorities to grasp the 'sincerity and goodwill' expressed in the Anti-Secession Law," stating that "Taiwan independence" secessionist forces had "malevolently distorted" the legislation and "sought to instigate hostility" between the two sides.
China's state-run news agencies also quoted professors from Chinese universities on Friday, who warned that the situation could become "further aggravated" by Saturday's planned event.
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Article 1: Bayern Munich suffered it's 1st defeat of the Bundesliga season after losing 3-1 to reigning champions Stuttgart. This was Bayern Munich's 1st lost in 7 months.
Mario Gomez gave Stuttgart the lead after only 10 minutes and Yildiray Bastürk gave Stuttgart a 2 goal lead after an half hour. Thorsten Kinhöfer was in the spotlight after denying Bayern Munich a goal which looked to cross the line. Stuttgart added a 3rd just before half time. Bayern Munich got a goal back with 4 minutes left. Other 2nd half highlights included a red card for Lucio. He was sent off for retaliating against a Stuttgart player.
Toni Kroos started his 1st professional game while Lukas Podolski got another start while Miroslav Klose started on the bench.
Bayern Munich and Stuttgart are off for 2 weeks due to a set of internationals a week today and a week from next Wednesday. Article 2: On Saturday, day two in the UEFA Euro 2016, debutants Albania lost to Switzerland 0–1; Wales defeated Slovakia 2–1; and England and Russia shared the spoils at 1–1. Russia was later penalized — today — by the .
The Swiss had greater ball possession. Schär scored a goal in the 5th minute and saw a yellow card around the 13th minute. In this match, Taulant Xhaka.
In the match, Gary Cahill of England in the 62nd minute and Vasili Berezutski scored in injury time, and the match ended in a 1–1 draw.
Today, the UEFA fined the €150,000 for supporters' misbehavior; and put them on probation, in the form of a suspended disqualification from the tournament.
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Article 1: File photo of Lieutenant General Jose Faustino Jr.
Lieutenant General Jose Faustino Jr., Chief of Staff of the COVID-19 testing|antigen test|anchor=Antigen test, according to a press conference held by AFP spokesperson Colonel Ramon Zagala on Monday. The colonel said they were waiting for the result from the reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction test|anchor=Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction test, which was expected to be announced later the same day.
Zagala said the AFP chief "is okay" and was isolated in his quarters at Quezon City for safety reasons. The chief's close contacts were notified about lieutenant general's results and isolated themselves.
The AFP chief was expected to meet the press around 9 AM Philippine Daily Inquirer and reported, but cancelled it after he was made known of his antigen test results.
Faustino became the chief of staff of AFP on July 31, succeeding then-General , who retired in the same day he was replaced. Faustino was the commander of AFP Joint Task Force Mindanao before he assumed the post.
The lieutenant general is not the first AFP chief of staff to test positive for COVID-19. In March 2020, then-General Sinovac's in the same month. Article 2: A Bulgarian police car on July 24, 2019.
Bulgarian officials Friday reported police had discovered eighteen dead migrants, including a child, in an abandoned truck in Lokorsko, northeast of the capital, Sofia.
Authorities made four arrests and transported 34 people to hospital, including five children, some in critical, but stable, condition. It is believed to be the country's deadliest incident involving migrants to date, with those alive "freezing, wet, and have not eaten for several days."
The truck was carrying timber with migrants in concealed compartments, according to the Ministry of Interior.
Health minister Asen Medzhidiev told reporters: "There has been a lack of oxygen to those who were locked in this truck"; according to head of the National Investigative Service Borislav Sarafov, some had suffocated.
Police believe the migrants were from Afghanistan and were being transported to Serbia through a route used by Middle Eastern migrants to reach the European Union. Sarafov said the migrants had illegally entered Bulgaria through Turkey and, after two days in the woods, entered the truck near .
One of the arrestees had already been sentenced for human trafficking; official Atanas Ilkov told Reuters charges were pending further evidence.
In December, Austria and The Netherlands blocked Bulgaria's accession to the passport-free over a rise in asylum-seekers entering through the Western Balkans and concerns the government was not addressing crime, respectively.
Both Bulgaria and its northern neighbour Romania, whose entry was also opposed by Austria, lie on the Western Balkan route for immigration, which Bucharest disputes.
The EU's external border control agency reported 61,375 migrants entered along that route in 2021, largely through Bulgaria or Greece, to the EU via common destinations Croatia, Hungary, Romania or Serbia.
The Ministry of Interior reported over 12,740 migrants were detained in Bulgaria in the first nine months of 2022, and attempted border crossings from January through August doubled to 80,000 from 2021 figures. | 0 |
Article 1: Alaska plans to count 50,000 of its remaining 90,000 ballots later today.
In Minnesota, an automatic recount is expected, as the margin is one-hundredth of one per cent.
A run-off election between Georgia's two leading candidates has been scheduled for December 2.
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The report also predicted that the UK economy could shrink by 2% during the next year.
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"Our team found that certain aggregated search queries tend to be very common during flu season each year," said Google in a blog post on the topic. "We compared these aggregated queries against data provided by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and we found that there's a very close relationship between the frequency of these search queries and the number of people who are experiencing flu-like symptoms each week."
The data will be passed on to the Centers for Disease Control, in the hope that Google figures will detect a flu outbreak earlier than the traditional government figures.
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Bennett Klein of GLADD, the gay rights organization that fought for approval by the Supreme Court, stated that the decision "does mark the end of a very long journey toward equality."
"Today, Connecticut sends a message of hope an inspiration to lesbian and gay people throughout this country who simply want to be treated as equal citizens by their government," he continued.
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A 17-year-old boy has died and a 16-year-old boy is in a serious condition in hospital after a fight broke out at the Royal Easter Show in Sydney, Australia, on Monday at around 8 p.m. Sydney time (10:00 ).
According to New South Wales Ambulance Inspector Mark Whittaker, the 17-year-old, who worked at the event, went into cardiac arrest after being stabbed in the chest in front of his parents. Paramedics performed CPR on the teenager before loading him into an ambulance. He died while being transported to . The 16-year-old suffered stab wounds to his leg and is undergoing treatment.
A 15-year-old boy was arrested at the show and was taken to Auburn Police Station for playing a small role in the stabbing, according to police. He appeared in a juvenile court and was granted bail on charges of affray, carrying a knife in public and being armed with intent.
Strike force detectives are still trying to track down others involved in the stabbing. They believe the stabbing was not a random attack, and instead was a planned confrontation between two groups.
The carnival's adult section was closed to allow forensics teams to inspect the area.
The show's manager Murray Wilton denied claims that event security failed. He said it was impossible to check the bags of all attendees, and they had decided to carry out random bag checks instead.
Event organisers have promised full refunds will be offered for people who no longer wish to attend the show.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison gave his condolences and said: "All our kids will be going to the Royal Easter Show. My kids will be going to the Royal Easter show. We want them to be safe. This is a very distressing event. The violence that is there, that has no place. It has no place in this country. It has no place at an event where people are coming to enjoy themselves."
Superintendent Danielle Emerton of the has reassured people the show is still safe and asked for the public's help to find others involved in the stabbing. She said: "We know that there were thousands of people at the show last night and we know that there's a lot of vision that is out there," urging anyone with information about the incident to come forward. | 0 |
Article 1: On Monday, United States Emily W. Murphy sent a letter to President-elect Joe Biden and his team, giving them permission to access what she described as post-election resources for a presidential transition process following the 2020 US Presidential Election on November 3, which multiple national news outlets have projected former US incumbent US President Donald Trump.
GSA Administrator Emily W. Murphy's letter to Joe Biden
Trump recommending GSA Administrator release transition support to Joe Biden
File photo of Emily Webster Murphy, US Administrator of the General Services Administration (GSA)
Murphy claimed she made this decision without influence from the White House, insisting she was "never directly or indirectly pressured by any official". However, she claimed she and her family had received violent threats due to her involvement in the process of allowing the incoming president elect access to federal documents.
President Trump, who appointed Murphy to her position himself in 2017, responded to her letter on Twitter, calling for the beginning of a presidential transition process "in the best interests of the country". The president's response is a drastic departure in tone from his previous rhetoric and demeanor regarding the issue, in which he asserted he had won the election despite several key certifying their results in favor of Biden.
The president did not concede or admit defeat in the election in his statement, however, and vowed to keep fighting "the good fight" with court cases challenging the election results in swing states.
To date, the president's claims of widespread federal judge dismissed a Trump lawsuit attempting to prevent the state of Pennsylvania from certifying their results.
Trump and his legal team have come under scrutiny from both sides of the aisle in response to their claims of election fraud. Biden and others in the Democratic Party warned the delayed transition process could potentially be a threat to Senate Article 2: A computer rendering of the Titan.
On June 28, the announced the debris from Titan (submersible)|Titan submersible, which it presumed imploded during a dive to the wreck of the Titanic on June 18, contained "presumed human remains". -based remotely-operated vehicles (ROVs) returned debris to land earlier the same day.
After approximately an hour and 45 minutes' descent, the Titan lost contact with its support ship, the . A search effort involving ships and ROVs began, and an ROV found debris about from the of the Titanic on June 22. US Coast Guard Rear Admiral John Mauger stated the debris was "consistent with a catastrophic implosion of the vehicle."
A Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute's Carl Hartsfield noted others claimed to be "banging noises", but Mauger said "there doesn't appear to be any connection between the noises" and the missing submersible.
With extreme pressure at that depth, an implosion would have instantly killed the five on board: OceanGate CEO , Pakistani-born British executive and his British 19-year-old son Suleman, British businessman and French explorer .
Titan submersible search pattern (DVIDS 7871940).jpg|The recovery's search pattern.
Stockton Rush (cropped).png|Rush in 2015. | 0 |
Article 1: President Gerald Ford
After passing Ronald Reagan on Sunday, Gerald Ford became the oldest living United States President in history at 93 years old.
Ford was born on July 14, 1913 in Omaha, Nebraska and has been alive for 93 years and 121 days. Former record-holder Reagan died at 93 years and 120 days in June, 2004. Before Reagan held the record, John Adams' 90 year lifespan gave him the bragging rights. George Washington, the first former president to die, held the record before that.
A former Michigan congressman, Ford became Vice President in December of 1973 under Richard Nixon after Spiro Agnew resigned due to taking bribes.
After Richard Nixon resigned on August 9, 1974 (possibly to avoid impeachment) because of the Watergate scandal, Ford became the 38th President.
Ford was the only president who was never elected to either the presidency or the vice presidency, and remained in office until defeated by Jimmy Carter in the November 1976 Presidential election.
Ford and his wife Betty, 88, live in Rancho Mirage in the desert area of Southern California.
"The length of one's days matters less than the love of one's family and friends," said Ford in a statement in the local Desert Sun newspaper.
Ford has battled a series of illnesses this year. He has been hospitalized four times for angioplasty, shortness of breath and pneumonia, and other tests. Article 2: On Wednesday, Croatia defeated England 2–1 in the semi-final of the 2018 FIFA Football World Cup with Mario Mandžukić scoring the winning goal in the additional time. With this victory, Croatia is in their first-ever FIFA World Cup finals, and they are to face France on Sunday.
Croatia had greater ball possession in the match. Croatian midfielder Luka Modrić committed a foul early in the game, and Kieran Trippier scored from the freekick, giving England an early lead in the match. In the 14th minute, Ante Rebić tried to equalise soon after, but were unsuccessful. In the 30th minute, English striker Jesse Lingard's through ball. Šime Vrsaljko also tried their luck before the end of the first half. The first half ended with England having a one-goal advantage.
Just three minutes into the second half, Croatia's forward Mario Mandžukić was yellow-carded. In the 54th minute, English defender Šime Vrsaljko's assist. England made a substitution in the 74th minute when Marcus Rashford came on for Sterling. The second half ended with both sides tied, 1–1.
At the beginning of the additional time, England made another change; Danny Rose. Josip Pivarić. The referee booked Rebić in the 96th minute and he was later replaced by Jordan Pickford could not prevent from going to the back of the English net. Vedran Ćorluka came on for him in the 115th minute. Croatia prevented England from getting an equaliser as the match ended 2–1 and Croatia advanced to their first-ever FIFA football World Cup final.
After the match, England's coach said, "At the moment we all feel the pain of defeat. I don't think realistically we expected to be here, but once you're here and played as well as we did, you want to take those opportunities in life. The dressing room is a difficult place at the moment." He also added, saying, "You have to suffer the result first sometimes. I'm hugely proud of what we've done — I couldn't have asked for any more. They've broken through a number of barriers in the past weeks."
Croatian coach said, "Nobody wanted to give in when I was preparing the first eleven, nobody wanted to say I was not ready in extra time, no one wanted to be subbed and this shows character and what makes me proud. Nobody gave up."
Croatia is to play France on Sunday in Moscow for the World Cup title.
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Article 1: The report from the Cole Inquiry has been handed down to Governor-General Michael Jeffrey. The inquiry was setup by the Howard government just over twelve months ago to investigate claims of corruption in relation to the United Nations Oil-for-Food Program.
The report will be made public next week.
Mainstream media has speculated that the report will recommend a string of charges against former AWB executives. It is believed that around AUD$222 million of illegal payments were made to a Jordanian trucking company partly owned by Hussein's Iraqi regime. AWB executives claim it was a victim of the Iraq government's corruption.
The Australian government has also come under scrutiny for failing to investigate reports of the AWB breaching UN sanctions against Iraq. It is expected that the report will contain little about the government's role as that is outside the inquiry's terms of reference.
The opposition is expected to attack the government when the report is tabled in parliament this week. Opposition spokesman for Public Accountability, Kelvin Thomson said the inquiry was set up to return a verdict wanted by the government and that the terms of reference were deliberately narrow.
"The inquiry has been given rorted terms of reference. It has been limited to reporting on the conduct of AWB, it has not been allowed to make findings concerning the conduct of Howard Government ministers."
"The Opposition expressly raised this with Commissioner Cole earlier this year and this was Commissioner Cole's response."
"So all along, the Howard Government has been seeking a verdict of AWB guilty, Government innocent," said Mr Thomson.
Former chairman of AWB, Trevor Flugge said he will not read the report when it is released and said he has done nothing wrong but fears going to gaol.
Speaking to The Australian newspaper, Mr Flugge said he had no interest in reading the Cole report because the case has been built against him from the outset.
"My public life is obviously over. And I can't honestly say that I miss it," Mr Flugge said. Article 2: International oil prices sank on Thursday as investors worried that a looming global recession will lower demand.
Oil has dropped more than $70 since July.
Crude oil for future delivery fell to below US$71 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, its lowest price in more than a year. In London, Brent crude oil for November dropped below $66 a barrel.
Oil prices have dropped more than 50 percent since hitting a record high of $147 a barrel in July. A report released today showed an unexpected increase in inventories. Analysts expected only a 1.9 million barrel increase last week, but the actual amount was 5.6 million barrels
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) cut its estimate for crude oil demand next year in a report released Wednesday. OPEC, which was planning on having an emergency meeting next month on the issue of lower oil prices, pushed forward the meeting to next week. The cartel is expected to cut production by 500,000 barrels a day, in a bid to boost oil prices. Saudi Arabia, which initially did not support the cut a few weeks ago, now supports such a move.
Some Asian governments are under pressure to reduce domestic fuel prices in light of the decline of the price of oil. In China, some drivers are paying more for gas than drivers in the United States, which last occurred several years ago. India, China, and Indonesia appear to be to content to keep the price at the same level; however, some other Asian governments have lowered the price already. Malaysia and Vietnam have cut prices and are expected to do the same if oil drops some more. | 0 |
Article 1: Projected path of Megi
Typhoon Megi passed by Taiwan devastating the island, killing seven and trapping 400 in automobiles. Megi is currently heading northwards and is expected to make landfall in Mainland China by 0600 today. Megi currently has winds of 150 kph (95 mph) with gusts of 185 kph (115 mph).
According to Taiwan's Central News Agency at least 23 people were missing including nineteen passengers of a tour bus. Rescuers were searching for the missing persons, while distributing aid to stranded tourists in the mountainous northwestern region of the country.
China's Xinhua news agency reported that helicopter were able to evacuate 70 people from the country, it was reported that the driver and a passenger from a second tour bus were also listed as missing.
According to a spokesman from Taiwan's National Disaster Prevention and Protection Commission, Cai Min, soldiers were deployed to rescue 200 stranded Chinese tourists, more than 24 tourists had been rescued as of Friday.
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The Joint Typhoon Warning Center has advised that Megi could make landfall in South China as early as 0600 UTC today. Although Megi is expected to make landfall quite a distance from Hong Kong, local officials are reminding residents to remain alert. The government has deployed teams to Hong Kong to mount sandbags, clear drains and trim trees, temporary shelters have also been opened.
Domestic and international flights in Southern China have been cancelled as strong gales are moving in ahead of Megi. About 130,000 fishing boats in the Fujian, Guangdong and Hainan provinces have been called back to port and about 150,000 in Fujian have fled to safety. The highest warning level has been issued for coastal ares China in anticipation of Megi. The warning gives officials the power to evacuate areas six hours before impact, close schools, airports and recall vessels in danger back to port.
'Full Wikinews coverage of the 2010 hurricane season'
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A US soldier has been sentenced by a South Korean court to ten years in prison for raping a teenager.
Although the court declined to identify the 21-year-old pending a possible appeal, media has named him as Pfc. Kevin Flippin. Flippin stood accused of breaking into the eighteen-year-old's rented accommodation and raping her for hours, stealing 5,000 won (4.50). The allegations date to September 24, with the indictment coming that month.
The US government was quick to hand Flippin over and issued an apology following the incident in . Flippin has a week to appeal starting from yesterday's sentencing. His sentence also requires 80 hours of sexual violence education, and will be public for a decade.
The soldier had been part of a major US presence 35 km (22 miles) north of Seoul as part of a 28,000-strong force the US maintains in the nation to help protect its ally from North Korean hostilities, augmenting 650,000 active local soldiers.
Although the US military is generally welcomed by the public, anti-US sentiment has been known to flare after incidents involving US troops. One prominent example in 2002 involved two schoolgirls killed by a US vehicle, with US soldiers acquitted by their country in a court martial.
Prosecutors in District Court had sought a fifteen-year sentence, which would match that handed to a US soldier in 1992 for rape and murder. That case saw calls for greater local powers over foreign soldiers and protesters demanded US troops leave the nation.
Presiding justice Park In-sik said Flippin "satisfied his sadistic and perverted sexual desire for three hours, while the victim was forced to endure fear and shame at her own home, where she was entitled to have her peace." He ruled the case was severe enough to warrant a sentence at the top end of the range, adding that Flippin's occupation was not a factor in the court's considerations.
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Article 1: The Spain Islamic Commission — who is the guideline of the Islamic religion in Iberian territory — announced a religious decree () against the Saudi terrorist Osama Bin Laden, for whom the religion urges the expulsion of the Islamic creed because of his criminal intentions and continuing to hide his violence and terrorist acts behind and within the Islamic religion. Islam advocates peace and brotherhood.
The Commission Secretary Mansur Escudero says that Bin Laden represents not only a danger for the Spanish society in general, but also for the Umma (Islamic community) for using the message of with harmful intentions. The decree also extends to the members of the terrorist network Al Qaeda. According to the sentence they should not be considered as Muslims anymore, but as apostates, according to Sharia (canonical law).
While Spanish Muslims show solidarity with the victims of September 11 during their usual meetings inside mosques, at the same time Al Qaeda's radical arm in Iraq urges to do more terrorist attacks against American targets and against the European countries established in Iraq since April, 2003. The Islamic group supporting Osama Bin Laden is the sect, headquartered in Saudi Arabia and principally funded by Saudi princes. The Wahhabis are found in many other nations. Article 2: Kjetil Ree
American economist bailout because of its weak growth and high amount of debt. Roubini made the comments to the newspaper. He said that it is becoming "increasingly likely" that Portugal will need international help. His comments came after Ireland received a €85 billion bailout from the European Union.
Portugal has become the second most likely euro rose around $1.33. After trading at $1.3181 in , it sank to its lowest level since September 21.
Roubini also commented on the situation of Spain, the fourth largest economy in Europe. He said that the country is "too big to bail out." Nicholas Smith, the director of equity research at in Tokyo said: "The one to really watch is Spain, as the eurozone's fourth largest economy, bigger than Greece, Ireland and Portugal put together. The question is whether the Union has the capital firepower to rescue Spain in the way it has for Greece and Ireland."
He commeted on the euro zone as a whole. He said "The economic outlook over the next few quarters, the next few years, is going to be weak economic growth ... The policy consequence is going to be more monetary easing," Roubini added. "The only central bank officially against further quantitative easing is the , but the pressure coming on sovereigns and the pressure coming on the financial sector in the euro zone are going to force the ECB to provide liquidity and increase base money." | 1 |
Article 1: Alice Cooper pictured without his famous stage makeup in 2006.
Solo American hard shock rock artist Alice Cooper has commented that The Osbournes, a reality TV show starring heavy metal vocalist Ozzy Osbourne, ruined the career of the Black Sabbath frontman.
Cooper said he felt that by allowing daily life in his house to be broadcast to the world, he destroyed the mystery that had previously surrounded him.
"Most fans thought he lived in a big, dark castle with skeletons in the cellar." said Cooper.
"When that show aired they knew he was just some guy who potters around his Beverly Hills mansion.
"It was meant to be some kind of comedy but the audience was laughing at Ozzy, not with him. And as a close friend, that made me very sad."
Ozzy Osbourne performing live in 2007.
Meanwhile, both artists have related news this week. Finnish solo symphonic power metal soprano Tarja Turunen, most famous as the former Nightwish frontwoman, has released a 30-second preview of her cover version of Alice Cooper's top ten hit Poison, which will feature on her upcoming album My Winter Storm.
Cooper himself has stated that during an upcoming tour he will replicate a mock hanging for the first time after a near-fatal accident performing the same stunt in 1988, only this time he will also be wearing a straightjacket.
Meanwhile, Ozzy has blamed illegal music downloads for poor sales of his latest album Black Rain, saying that the low sales have forced him into a 90-gig world tour that he has admitted he can barely cope with.
<!-- not sure this is necessary Article 2: Ed McMahon in 2005
Ed McMahon, the long time announcer of The Tonight Show, has died age 86. McMahon, who joined The Tonight Show in 1962, died at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center shortly after midnight on June 23. Made famous by his “Here’s Johnny!” catchphrase, McMahon worked with Tonight Show host Johnny Carson for 30 years.
In recent years, McMahon had battled several health issues. In 2007, he fell and broke his neck through which he suffered pain until his death. He began to suffer from pneumonia in March 2009. Reports also began to surface that he had been diagnosed with suspected bone cancer.
McMahon was a Marine Corps fighter pilot in World War II and returned to the United States after the war. He graduated college and became a television producer in Philadelphia. He later served in the Korean War, completing another tour of duty, then was selected as the announcer for ABC daytime program Who Do You Trust? This was the first time McMahon worked alongside Johnny Carson. The two were paired up again four years later as McMahon replaced Hugh Downs as the announcer on The Tonight Show. McMahon earned a reported US$1 million a year working with Carson.
McMahon also appeared in several films and was the host of the talent show Star Search. He annually co-hosted the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon and conducted coverage of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
McMahon is survived by his wife Pam and five children. No funeral arrangements have been planned as of yet. | 1 |
Article 1: Specialist James Barker, a US Army soldier in the 502nd Infantry Regiment, pleaded guilty to raping a 14 year old Iraqi girl before murdering her and her family and was sentenced to life in prison.
Barker could face up to 90 years in jail, but is eligible for parole in 20 years.
The incident took place in the town of Mahmudiyah, south of Baghdad in March, 2006. Five soldiers are facing charges in connection with the rape-slayings, which sparked outrage in Iraq, and led Iraqi leaders to call for a review of the immunity from prosecution given to coalition forces operating in Iraq.
Baker testified in detail about what had taken place, which led to the court-martial proceedings against three other soldiers, Pfc. Jesse Spielman, Sgt. Paul Cortez, and Pfc. Bryan Howard. A fifth soldier, Steven D. Green , who is no longer in military service, faces trial in a civilian court in Kentucky. Article 2: Nancy Pelosi was chosen by Democrats|foreign=suppress in the U.S. House of Representatives to take the title and role of House Speaker on Thursday. Unanimously chosen, Pelosi will be the first woman Speaker in US history.
While calling for unity within the Democratic party as the party votes as to who gains leadership positions within the House and Senate for the first time in 12 years. Within moments of being officially chosen Speaker-Elect she pushed forward her nomination of Representative John Murtha for the No. 2 post in the House — majority leader. Voting is now going on in this contested race between Murtha and Representative Steny Hoyer, the current Democratic Party second-in-command.
Pelosi takes the position in January, taking over for . Hastert confirmed that he would not seek election as House Minority Leader in 2007. | 1 |
Article 1: Federal marshals seize killer beds on behalf of the FDA
On behalf of the FDA, U.S. Federal marshals have begun seizing beds which have killed at least seven patients out of about 30 who had become trapped by the products. Three versions of the bed were found to be "dangerous to health" by the FDA, with the specific danger of, "placing patients at an increased risk of entrapment and asphyxiation."
The model numbers of the faulty beds include the Vail 500, 1000, and 2000 Enclosed Bed Systems. The beds are made by Toledo, Ohio-based Vail Products, Inc.
In a government press release, the FDA pointed out that Vail had failed to heed two previous warnings issued by the agency, asking the company to comply with regulations regarding proper labeling and usage directions. The FDA also said that Vail had failed to supply required documentation to the agency to comply with the Medical Device Reporting and Reports of Corrections and Removals regulations.
At the time this story was filed, the Vail web site made no mention of today's FDA announcement. Toledo's WTOL News 11 reported that, "Company officials say their beds aren't dangerous if used properly." The Vail corporate web site claims that the beds allow, "the patient to move about freely within a safe, padded environment" and "control wandering."
The FDA is the U.S. agency responsible for regulating food, drugs, medical devices, and cosmetics.
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* Article 2: In an attempt to speak with as many candidates as possible during the 2008 Canadian federal election, Wikinews has talked via email with Anne Lagacé Dowson. Dowson is a candidate in Quebec's Westmount—Ville-Marie riding, running under the New Democratic Party (NDP) banner.
There is no incumbent in Dowson's riding, as the area's Liberal MP resigned earlier this year. A by-election was scheduled, but cancelled at the last minute, once Prime Minister Stephen Harper called a national election. Candidates in the riding are Dowson (NDP), former astronaut Marc Garneau (Liberal), Charles Larivée (Bloc Québécois), Guy Dufort (Conservative), and co-deputy party leader for the Greens Claude William Genest. Judith Vienneau of the joke party Neorhino.ca is also on the ballot.
The riding includes the City of Westmount, parts of Old Montreal, the Borough of Ville-Marie, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, and The Plateau.
The following is an interview with Ms. Dowson, conducted via email. The interview is published unedited, as sent to Wikinews.
: But the real tipping point that made Anne realize she had to do something more? When her 7 year-old daughter, Emma, asked her “Mummy, what do we do when there are no fish left in the oceans”?
'Previous to this campaign, have you been politically involved? How will you apply your
previous work/volunteer/life experience to serving your constituents?'
: Anne has been a journalist on CBC and Radio-Canada for close to 20 years. She hosted a call-in radio show for years. Her strength will be to listen to her constituents' concerns and be a strong voice
for those concerns in Ottawa.
'As you campaign around your riding, it's likely that some issues are mentioned more often by voters, than other issues. What would you say are the three hottest topics this election, in your riding? What would you and your party do to address these issues?'
: The environment is certainly a big concern for everyone. The NDP's cap-and-trade proposal to curb greenhouse gas emissions gets a great reception at the doorsteps. People in Westmount--Ville-Maire are really supportive of environmental initiatives like this, especially because it sets absolute limits to the emissions of big polluters and gives real incentives to produce environmentally friendly products.
: Our riding is also a very demographically mixed one. Fairly wealthy houses and extreme poverty; English, French and New Canadians side by side. Anne would definitely work on mediating some of the most blatant disparaties, for example, by extending the national homelessness partnership.
: Finally, our riding is home to three large university campuses. Having paid off her student debt over a lengthy period, Anne knows how difficult it is for students to make ends meet. Anne will stand up for better grants, more affordable student loans and reinstating the full summer student employment programme.
'There are more ways than ever to get your message out, from the traditional campaign fliers and lawn signs, to new media like websites, Facebook, and YouTube. The tried-and-true routes get the message out to the masses much easier, but digital alternatives are much more measurable in how many are seeing or interacting with your campaign. What seems to be the most effective, from your experience?'
: Check out some of the videos on our website, www.annelagacedowson.ca We've really made an effort to use internet-based communications as much as we can. We are also leading all other candidates in Westmount—Ville-Marie in Facebook friends. Facebook has become a great events organising and mobilisation tool. | 0 |
Article 1: Carl Edwards won the NASCAR 2010 Ford 400 held yesterday at Homestead, Florida|Homestead, Florida. List of NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champions|championship after finishing second — his fifth championship in a row. Throughout the course of the race there were 10 cautions and 25 lead changes among 9 different drivers.
Afterward, Edwards commented, "To finish like this is unreal. It’s just these guys didn’t give up. It’s just a great way to end the season."
File photo of Carl Edwards (2008) at
Jimmie Johnson, the 2010 Sprint Cup Series Series champion.
Richard Childress Racing, and A. J. Allmendinger finished 5th in front of Ryan Newman and Matt Kenseth, and rounded out the top ten finishers in the race.
In the Drivers' championship, Johnson claimed his fifth consecutive championship, after being in second prior to the race. Jeff Gordon and was ninth and tenth.
Showing his excitement, Johnson said, "I can’t believe this! It’s unbelievable. You guys are the best. I can’t thank you enough," on his radio. Chevrolet won the Maunfacturers' championship with 261 points, while Toyota followed with 217.
Afterward, Johnson's crew chief, commented, "I think finally, finally after pulling this off Jimmie will get the respect that he deserves. Knowing what we had to do — come down here and beat them — and we beat them."
"I’m disappointed," Hamlin said afterward. "Our car was lightning fast until that last wreck. When we hit the 16 (Biffle) that knocked the toe-in out. It wasn’t as fast after that. It’s just circumstances but we had a great year. We won the most races (8) and we contended like we have never contended before but circumstances took us out of this one. I don’t think the 48 (Johnson) showed the strength this year like they did in the past and that opened the door for the rest of us."
Next, third place finisher, Harvick commented, "We went down swinging and that is what we came here to do. Those guys outran us on that last restart there. All in all I’m proud of all my guys. We did everything we wanted to do today but win the race. This is a great spot to start building for consistent championship runs next year. We had a top three car but they got by us on the restarts. All in all, it was a good day. What can you do?" Article 2: Interview with George Bagshaw on March 6, 2022.
Cricket match ups on Australia's Sunshine Coast have been set, with many being made through washed out semi finals.
Three games scheduled the be played at Morayfield, and Moreton Bay Region|Moreton Bay Council, closed access to any sporting grounds in their region. The games affected were the Division 3 game between Burpengary and USC, the Division 1 game between Caboolture and , and the Division 4 game between Wamuran-Stanley River and Palmwoods.
No play was possible on either ground at the grounds, as the sports club that controls the facilities did not allow them access. Games affected were the Division 4 game between Glasshouse and Maroochydore, and the Division 5 game between Glasshouse and USC.
One ground in Cooroy- at the Palmwoods Sports Reserve nearly had a first innings result on day 1. The home side batted first scoring 92. Cooroy were 52 for the loss of 9 wickets. Palmwoods would get the last wicket on Sunday.
Final scoreboard for the USC-Palmwoods game
The main ground in , Read Park, was deemed too water logged after an inspection by both teams in the Division 1 game between Tewantin Noosa and Glasshouse. Tewantins Division 6 side managed to get 61 overs in on Sunday against Yandina before lighting became a factor. That match concluded in a draw.
USC and Palmwoods got enough play in for a first innings result. The home side chased down the 86 required for that result an hour before the scheduled lunch break. Palmwoods would concede the match about 20 minutes prior to the interval.
USC George Bagshaw said: "We bowled well, bowled them out for about 86 and yeah, did the rest with the bat. We certainly dug in; Me and Travis Bell put on a good partnership and, yeah, good for the rest of the boys to get it done this morning." | 0 |
Article 1: On November 13, Torontoians will be heading to the polls to vote for their ward's councillor and for mayor. Among Toronto's ridings is Davenport (Ward 17). One candidates responded to Wikinews' requests for an interview. This ward's candidates include Wilson Basantes Espinoza, Alejandra Bravo, Fred Dominelli, David Faria, Cesar Palacio (incumbent), Cinzia Scalabrini, and 'Gustavo Valdez'.
For more information on the election, read Toronto municipal election, 2006.
'Q:' Describe the three most important issues in your campaign.
: 'A:' a) Community Safety and crime prevention b) Fair property taxes and improved city services c) Cleaner and Greener neighborhoods
'Q:' What one election issue do you feel is most relevant to your ward in this election?
: 'A:' Saint Clair Street Car right of way. Even the neighborhoods oppose to it, I believe we have to do Saint Clair 22 century, however I will follow what the community wishes
'Q:' Why have you chosen to involve yourself in the political process?
: 'A:' For the tax problem then the community me his offered its support
'Q:' Why do you want to represent this particular ward on council?
: 'A:' Because its the ward were I live
'Q:' How are you currently involved in the community?
: 'A:' Trough my artistic side, singing and writing for them in my small publication. Performing also my poetry. I can not involve directly right know in the community local issues due I am a father of 2 children. I care personally for them.
'Q:' Which council decision (since the 2003 election) do you feel the city/your ward should be most proud of, and which was least desirable?
: 'A:' In keeping going and growing, the least desirable is the growing homeless community
'Q:' If you were elected as a "rookie" councillor, What would you bring to the table beyond the incumbent?
: 'A:' The municipal government need to provide incentives and motivate entrepreneurship through tax cutting, low operating and administrative system of work. It we'll create jobs, revenue and wealth. But we need to motivate the community. We need more parks health centers, shelters and food banks.
: Affordable housing at ward 17 and the entire city is essential.
: Taxes on property should be cut of and utilities lowered.
: Special attention should be put on low child care facilities to ease parents and allow them to work for the welfare of their families.
: The family is the center of the society.
: We look forward to defeat poverty.
: More creational activities are necessary for the social isolated and disabled and people with special necessities.
: Of woman is part of our agenda. They need always attention.
: We need to incentive the working class: They are the ones who construct the city, produce and keep the economy going.
: Special attention for the working class is necessary.
: I care for the environment,therefore we have to work for the greenhouse-gas emission problem and Kyoto Protocol.
: Toronto is one of the most polluted cities in North America and we have to work on the air we breath free.
: In building a great communities we build a great country. And we have to prepare the country for the years to come to face the challenges of the future.
: So education is important. If we educate citizens we dot have to worry about crime and to spent money in unnecessary security and control,instead more education more safe city,happy families therefore neighborhoods.
: Let's be prepare with vision for the future.
'Q:' What does Toronto mean to you?
: 'A:' It's the city were I risen my kids, therefore I am interested in the city for the good will of the community and my family itself Article 2: An illustration of SARS-CoV-2 revealing ultrastructural morphology exhibited by coronaviruses.
On Wednesday, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) declared a mask mandate in the National Capital Region as COVID-19 cases once again soared in India's capital. According to authorities, violators will be fined INR500 for non-compliance with the mandate. Delhi’s Lieutenant Governor advised its citizens on Twitter to “ensure strict enforcement of COVID appropriate behaviour”.
On Tuesday, Delhi saw a 26% jump in COVID-19 cases as compared to the day before. Yesterday, India reported 2,067 new COVID-19 cases out of which Delhi accounted for 30% of the total cases while Delhi's positivity rate increased from 4.42% to 5.70%. India’s daily infection tally has been on a downfall after it experienced the third wave of the pandemic since January.
Delhi, with other states including Kerala, Haryana, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajesh Bhushan has warned the states against leniency and added it could negate its pandemic management efforts. It has also ordered states to monitor infection clusters and increase genome sequencing. | 0 |
Article 1: A medical helicopter has crashed near Chicago, Illinois killing three crew members and the patient, a thirteen-month-old baby girl. The crew aboard the helicopter included the pilot, a nurse and a paramedic.
The helicopter, operated by Air Angels Inc., was transporting the baby to Children's Memorial Hospital from Valley West Hospital, when it hit a wire connected to a 734-foot (224-meter) radio tower in Aurora and burst into flames around 12:00 a.m. (EDT). The baby was suffering from epileptic seizures.
The cause of the crash is not known, and there were no reported problems with the helicopter before it took off. An investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is ongoing.
This is the third crash which involved an Air Angels helicopter. In 2003, a pilot was killed when his chopper crashed. An investigation concluded that the cause was pilot error, and bad weather. Another chopper crashed in 2007, but there were no injuries. Article 2: The Conference Board, a non-profit global business organization, said on Thursday that its index of leading economic indicators in the United States rose by 1.2% last month, the second consecutive increase. The rise is the largest back-to-back increase since the last two months of 2001, the group said.
Seven of the ten indicators had seen an improvement: stock prices, money supply, building permits, capital-goods orders, consumer expectation and interest-rate spread. The three indicators that had contracted were initial jobless claims, consumer-goods orders, and work hours at factories.
"The recession is losing steam," said an economist for the Board, Ken Goldstein. "Confidence is building and financial market volatility is abating. Even the housing market appears to be stabilizing."
"If these trends continue, expect a slow recovery beginning before the end of the year. However, employment will take longer to turn around," he added. | 0 |
Article 1: A CNN news program, The Situation Room, today reported that George W. Bush's job approval rating has dropped to 31 percent, with 63 percent disapproving of the job he is doing.
The Situation Room also reported that leaders of Iran and Syria have said that if the president were to ask for help from them, "...all their problems will be solved."
President Bush has not yet responded to the announcement made by the leaders of Iran and Syria, but The Situation Room said that Bush should definitely "take the deal". Article 2: Map of Russia - Central Federal District (2018 composition).svg|thumb|left|Belgorod and the other targets were all in the the Central Federal District (red) of Russia.
At least 21 people were killed and 110 were injured in Russia after a Ukrainian missile and drone strike on Saturday morning. Belgorod Oblast, said that two children had died in a residential area of , the oblast's capital city.
Ukraine carried out the assault in response to Russian missile attacks that killed at least 41 Ukrainians, according to an intelligence source quoted by RBC-Ukraine. The two countries have been at full-scale war since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
The Russian Ministry of Defense (MOD) said the strikes would "not go unpunished."
The strikes also hit Tula, Russia|Tula, and Suspilne. Drones also focused on military electronics manufacturer Kremniy El in .
32 drones from Ukraine were shot down and destroyed by the Russian air defense systems over four Russian oblasts: Bryansk, Oryol, Kursk, and Moscow, according to the MOD. | 0 |
Article 1: Pakistan test fires nuclear-capable missile
Pakistan announced that their military conducted a successful test-firing of a nuclear-capable missile, with a range of 2,000 km (1,200 miles), earlier today.
"Today, we carried out a successful test-firing of the indigenously developed Shaheen II missile," announced a Pakistani military official.
A statement issued by the Pakistani military noted that Pakistan gave prior notice of the test to nearby countries.
"The test was carried out to verify some of the refined technical parameters," the statement said, "Al Hamd-o-Lillah' (With the grace of God) all parameters were validated."
Pakistani President General Pervez Musharraf congratulated the engineers and scientists who conducted the successful test.
The long-range missile can reach 2,000 km away
"The capability was here to stay, will continue to go from strength to strength and no harm will ever be allowed to come to it," said Musharraf.
The Press Trust of India pointed out that the missile, "was capable of hitting targets deep into the Indian territory," and that the missile had been test-fired previously under the name Hatf-VI, as a counterpart to India's Agni-II missile system.
India and Pakistan have both conducted a series of missile tests in the region.
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* Article 2: Screenshot of Al Jazeera homepage after being hacked Tuesday
Screenshot of aljazeera.net taken today
The website of international news service Al Jazeera has been restored and is working as normal, following a hack of the website by a group identifying itself as Al-Rashedon.
Wikinews was contacted Tuesday by Al Jazeera about the incident, and referred to a statement from a spokesperson for the news service saying: "Some visitors to our websites faced disruption after external DNS servers were compromised. The company that operates them quickly resolved this, though some users may continue to experience issues for a while longer. We thank our online community for their patience and support."
On the hacked webpage Al-Rashedon, a group apparently supporting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, said they had performed this action "in response to Al Jazeera's position against the people and government of Syria". The Al-Rashedon statement condemned Al Jazeera for its coverage of the in an Arabic language statement which the group said was "supportive of the armed terrorist groups and spreading false fabricated news." Al Jazeera has yet to comment about Al-Rashedon's allegations.
The hacked page contained the current Syrian flag displayed on the top left, a screenshot of the usual Al Jazeera homepage overlaid with a graphic resembling a rubber-stamped "HACK", and with a silhouette of two men sitting at a desk below it. The nature, and exact purpose, of the group is unknown..
Syria's civil war has been covered from the outset in great detail by Al Jazeera, based in Qatar, a Middle Eastern country whose government is supportive of the .
Al Jazeera's English website was previously attacked in February, by a group identifying itself as the Syrian Electronic Army SEA. The same group accessed Al Jazeera's page on social networking website Twitter in July, posting messages critical of Syrian opposition members. The SEA also claimed responsibility for attacking the websites of Saudi Arabian news service and Harvard in the US state of Massachusetts.
The website of Reuters, another news service, was reportedly hacked by Syrian government supporters in August. | 1 |
Article 1: A white powder fell out of an envelope on the courthouse's third floor.
A "white powder" has been discovered at the Michael J. Dillon courthouse at 68 Court Street in downtown Buffalo, New York.
According to Buffalo Fire Chief Don McFeely, "a call was placed to 911 at approximately 1:58 p.m. EST by a woman working on the third floor" of the courthouse after she opened a "letter which contained a suspicious white powder."
The building was immediately evacuated, which had at least 200 people in it, but it is unknown where the occupants of the building went, as only fire, police, and government officials were observed around the outside of the building. No decontamination site was seen, but according to witnesses, Hazmat officials were seen entering the building with bio-hazard suits.
McFeely also stated that the letter "contained codes," but would not elaborate on what the codes were or what they meant and that a "message was written on the letter which suggested that the powder was harmful."
Preliminary tests performed on the scene determined that the powder was not but the test did not "rule out anything else that maybe harmful," stated McFeely. "The letter has been removed from the building and has been taken to the FBI field office in Buffalo for further tests."
The letter was not addressed to anyone specifically, being addressed to just the courthouse itself.
So far no injuries or illnesses have been reported and according to McFeely, no one has been taken to the hospital, although stretchers were seen entering the building. The fire department was not on high alert but blocked off the area surrounding the courthouse as a "precautionary measure," said McFeely. The area was opened to traffic again at about 5:00 p.m. and the courthouse was open for business today.
The FBI has not released a statement and it is still unknown what the powder is. Article 2: Baseball home-run leader Barry Bonds was indicted today in the United States District Court in San Francisco, California. The charges of perjury and obstruction of justice stem from Bonds's testimony that he did not knowingly take steroids to a grand jury during the BALCO scandal.
Barry Bonds
Evidence was allegedly obtained during the investigation that included a positive test for performance-enhancing substances. Bonds, currently a free agent, still denies using steroids.
The indictment said: "During the criminal investigation, evidence was obtained including positive tests for the presence of anabolic steroids and other performance-enhancing substances for Bonds and other professional athletes."
If Bonds is convicted of all four counts of perjury and one count of obstruction of justice, he could face up to 20 to 30 years in prison. | 1 |
Article 1: 2013 photo of a Ukrainian Railways train departing Kiev for the Crimea
Despite the intervention in parts of Crimea, Ukraine by forces connected to Russia in the past few days, the rail border between the countries remains open today. Neither Ukrzaliznytsia, the Ukrainian national railway, nor have any announcements on their website regarding any changes in service.
According to uk|Ukrainian language|На перонах залізничних станцій, в межах пунктів пропуску (контролю) встановлюються додаткові режимні заходи, організовано взаємодію з лінійним відділом міліції на транспорті щодо можливості локалізації вірогідних конфліктних ситуацій.|additional steps are being organized in relation to regional transport police to deal the possibility of localization of possible conflicts. If the guards suspect people are entering for the purpose of destabilizing the country, the police reserve the right to deny them entry to the country.
The reports that Russians traveling via train between the two countries have been turned away at the border including a man traveling from Simferopol, a .
The 2014 Winter Paralympics are scheduled to start Friday in Sochi, Russia and some attendees, including Wikinews reporters, are scheduled to arrive at the Games via trains between Russia and the Ukraine. Article 2: __NOTOC__
On February 6, Russian Wikinews attended the opening day of Russian photographer Viktor Pinchuk's 12th exhibition, Afghanistan, 2008, hosted by the Crimean Ethnographic Museum in Simferopol.
The 40-item collection was produced during a two-month journey, including visits to seven Asian nations, with a focus on local life. It included landscape, portrait, street, ethnographic, and narrative photographs, mostly in the straight style.
The exhibition drew gymnasium students, members of a local teachers' club, and veterans.
Pinchuk said, "The solo expedition, whose main purpose was to visit Afghanistan, ended successfully: stay in country, rated as the most dangerous and undesirable for tourism, went off without a major incidents; a short 'rest' in Kabul prison served as the event around which unwinds plot of the book Afghan prisoner, becoming one of adventures, without which our life would have turned into a dull execution of duties. But, main important, material for the photo exhibition was prepared in accordance with the idea, safely delivered to the homeland, and presented in the museum exhibition hall."
Афганистан, год 2008-й (афиша фотовыставки).jpg|A poster for the exhibition.
Афганистан, год 2008-й (пресс-релиз).jpg|A poster describing Pinchuk's previous exhibitions.
«Афганистан, год 2008-й», открытие фотовыставки (4).jpg|Visitors.
«Афганистан, год 2008-й», открытие фотовыставки (2).jpg|A visitor.
«Афганистан, год 2008-й», открытие фотовыставки (1).jpg|Local students visiting.
Виктор Пинчук на открытии фотовыставки.jpg|Pinchuk in front of his photographs.
«Афганистан, год 2008-й», открытие фотовыставки (5).jpg|Interesting...
«Афганистан, год 2008-й», открытие фотовыставки (3).jpg|A veteran of the Soviet-Afghan War.
«Афганистан, год 2008-й», открытие фотовыставки (6).jpg|Visitors.
Afghanistan, 2008, photo exhibition (prehistory of the event).webm|Pinchuk speaking about the voyage.
'A sampling of the exhibited works:'
Rock "Stone crematorium".jpg|A "stone crematorium" in .
Бамиан , поселение в низине.jpg|A valley in Bamyan Province.
Chardi village, Only street.jpg|The only street in the Bamyan Province village Chardi.
Engaged in conversation.jpg|Two men conversing.
Sight (look).jpg|A young woman in Mazar-i-Sharif. | 1 |
Article 1: China announces details of anti-secession law.
China passed a new law that codifies a legal basis for authorising the use of military force to stop Taiwan from formally declaring its independence from the mainland. The anti-succession law was passed by the National People's Congress on March 8 in Beijing.
The deputy chairman of the NPC told members gathered at the Great Hall of the People that, "If possibilities for a peaceful reunification should be completely exhausted, the state shall employ non-peaceful means and other necessary measures to protect China's sovereignty and territorial integrity." The broad language of the law does not specify any exact measures China might take, but its effect is to reinforce the mainland's long held position of a one-China principle.
The Mainland Affairs Council in Taipei described the law as "malicious" and "crude". Taiwan views the development as violating international norms for peacefully resolving disputes. "This law exposes China's plot to impose armed force to swallow up Taiwan," read the council's written statement. "In essence, it has handed its military a blank check to unleash force against Taiwan." A Taiwanese Defence Ministry spokesperson announced that military exercises will be held this summer to practice defending against an attack.
The White House had urged China to reconsider the law before it was passed. White House press secretary Scott McClellan said, "We view it as unhelpful - something that runs counter to recent trends toward a warming in cross-strait relations. We oppose any attempts to determine the future of Taiwan by anything other than peaceful means."
China has always officially maintained that Taiwan, which split from the mainland in 1949, is a rogue territory which must eventually reunify with China. Just recently in a ‘four point guideline' set forth on March 5, 2005, Chinese President Hu Jintao said, "On no account shall the 1.3 billion Chinese people allow anyone to undermine China's sovereignty and territorial integrity. We will not have the slightest hesitation, falter or concession on the major principle issue of opposing secession. The 'Taiwan independence' secessionist forces must abandon their secessionist stand and stop all 'Taiwan independence' activities."
Chinese opposition to a plan by Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian for a referendum on a new constitution that may violate Jintao's ‘four-point guideline' is seen in part as prompting the new law.
sv:2005/03/08:Kina hotar använda "icke-fredliga medel" Article 2: left
London, England — Yesterday, Wikinews interviewed Michael Hartung, the Australian Deputy Chef de Mission at the Australian team quarters in the Paralympic Village.
What does the Deputy Chef de Mission do?
::'Michael Hartung:' Makes the chef look good! (laughter) No, my role here is in support of our Chef de Mission and the team. There's two of us, myself, and Kate McLoughlin is the other Deputy Chef de Mission. She focuses on the operations side of things, the logistics and travel and all that sort of stuff, the foundations of preparing the team and really getting here and back home safely with all their gear. The part of the team that I look after is the performance side of things, so in my particular area I have guys in the sports science and sports medicine grew, which is managed by Alison Campbell. We have classification in my area which is managed by Geoff Han. We've got high performance and coach support, which is Chris Nunn, and the media guys fit under my side of things, and they are managed by Tim Mannion. All of those guys are all staff at the APC, and they've been working with us for a considerable amount of time. They are all experts in their areas so as far as the performance elements of the team are concerned we've got a great bunch of people that come in here and its a continuation of the the job that we prepare for and that we do every day. So that's been good, we're not a bunch of outsiders who've come together just for this team. We're professionals who work in these fields, doing these jobs day in and day out, so we should be experts when we get to the games in how it should be delivered.
Is everything going according to plan for you guys? You've got more gold medals than you got in Beijing.
::'Michael Hartung:' Yep. Still not there yet in total but we're happy. Our goal coming into this, one main goal was to finish top five, and we're just hanging on. It's tough. That's the reality of Olympic sport. We're having a really good games at the moment. The sub goal of ours was to just beat the medal tally at Beijing which we've achieved on gold, which is terrific, and we should achieve on total as well if things keep going the way they are for the next couple of days. That's a terrific result and it just shows the strength of the Paralympic movement, and the strength of our competitors that there are so many nations fighting it out to be in that top five, and we're certainly not there by any means. The nation that's just behind us, the USA, is a traditional powerhouse of Paralympic sport, and a nation that has done extremely well over the history of Paralympic sport. So where we are right now is in a really good position and if we stay where we are now, and pick up a few more medals, we'll be really happy with the performance of the team and where it's gone on the medal tally.
In the lead up to this there was a lot of coverage of how much money the government gave you for stuff like the recovery centre inside here. How fundamental has that government support been towards this?
::'Michael Hartung:' The Federal government provides us with basically all the funding that we give to the sport programs to deliver sport programs to athletes. And without the Federal government's support, we cannot do the job that we do. It is essential, and without their investment we certainly wouldn't be seeing the results that we have here. That been said we've also had great support in addition to funding from ministers and senators that have come across here and supported the team. Senator Kate Lundy is here. She's departing tonight, but has been here for most of the games. It's been terrific for us and the team to have had that sort of support for us here.
Classification has been a big issue in these games. To an extent the Americans lost some... Oscar's classification's been a big deal... There hasn't been much Australian news related to classifications.
::'Michael Hartung:' No, which is a really good sign. I think that shows all the work we've put in over the years to classification. We've got a program that's been led by Jim MacMahon that we consider to be a world leading program. Which means that our policies and procedures and our work at a national level to ensure that people know where they fit in the classification spectrum, and no doubt early on is very important to us. So we minimise the risk of an athlete turning up and having a change in classification. This is really the Big Show. This is where it really matters, and for athletes to come here and not be 100% sure about their classification is something that we absolutely want to avoid. We should know where they sit, and there is a lot of money that is now invested through Federal funding and through the states' institutes and academies and so on. A lot of money gets invested and we need some surety about where that investment is going, and which athletes are prospects for medals when they turn up.
We've talked to the Oceania people who've said they've got tremendous support from the APC with the Wales thing. Are you guys going to continue to do that support? Because they couldn't say enough nice things about the APC and the coaches talking to their athletes.
::'Michael Hartung:' Yeah, that's terrific. I think that we certainly have an ongoing role that we have played and continue to play in Oceania in helping those countries really develop. New Zealand's doing great and they're certainly self-sufficient, and here as a great sporting nation, but for some of our other, smaller neighbors, it's great that we've been able to provide support. We've provided opportunities for them to come and be part of the Cardiff staging environment we set up for our team. We started preparations for that back in 2007. So they joined us there, and hopefully that's helped then achieve their great results here, with Fiji winning a gold medal. That's a tremendous achievement for Oceania as a whole, not just Fiji, and that's been terrific to know that the staging camp has assisted with that, along with the other support that we provide. We helped establish the Oceania Paralympic Committee not so long ago. We have Paul Bird, one of our Vice Presidents, as the President of the Oceania Paralympic Committee, and so we have a really close working relationship with those nations. It's terrific to see them succeed, and to be successful.
Have you had a chance to see many of your athletes compete? And has there been any performance that has really stood out, Australian or not Australian?
::'Michael Hartung:' Yeah! I've been fortunate to see a lot of our guys compete, right across the board. There's many, many highlights for me. I don't think there's been one stand out performance. Jacqueline Freney|Jacqui Freney's performances here to win seven gold medals has been amazing, and she's had a great meet here. Matt Cowdrey breaking the record and becoming the athlete to win the most gold medals for Australia has been a real achievement. But then seeing some of the things we've seen on the track and track cycling, Michael Gallagher and the other guys, they've had a great performance here at the games, incredibly well, and I think the most satisfying element of all of those performances is knowing the work that's gone into supporting those athletes from the the people around them, but the work that those individual athletes have put into achieving success, because coming here, you can see that this is an elite sporting environment, and only the best in the world will achieve success, and you don't become the best by doing it half arsed; you have to give it 150%, and that's what it takes. No one wins unless they do that.
Anything else that we should know?
::'Michael Hartung:' Apart from what we've just spoken about, I think that the London Organising Committee has done a terrific job with these games. They've made a sensational environment. Every games has its challenges, but the challenges here have been quite minor, and haven't caused any major disruptions. It enabled us to create an environment here which is really performance based. That's what the Australian Paralympic Committee is working on all the time is to create the best environment for our athletes. So that's been great. The crowds here have been tremendous and the support of the British public, and that started long ago with the acknowledgment of both Olympic and Paralympic. Whenever they say things, they say "Olympic and Paralympic". It's not been just about one games, primarily the Olympic Games or whatever, and that's been really good in terms of the psyche of the British people, because they know about Paralympic sport. They're a very knowledgeable audience, and that's been really great for the crowds here. They've cheered really loudly for the British athletes, but they've also been giving all the other athletes a big cheer as well, which is wonderful. And taking away from these games, the crowd, and the involvement and the support of all the athletes that have competed has been wonderful.
Full audio of the interview with Hartung, assistant Chef de Mission for Australia while in London | 0 |
Article 1: Ice Cube Curling Center at the 2014 Winter Paralympics on difficult playing conditions as a result of the warm temperature outside. In the morning session, the South Korea lost to Russia in the eighth end by a score of 5–7, the United States lost to Canada 2–7 in seven ends, Norway edged out Finland 6–8 in extra ends, and China defeated Sweden 8–4 in seven ends.
At the conclusion of the morning session, round robin standing had Canada in first with 4 wins; Slovakia in second with 3 wins; Russia in third with 3 wins and 1 loss; Great Britain in fourth with 2 wins and 1 loss; China and Norway in fifth with 2 wins and 2 losses; South Korea, Sweden, and the United States in seventh place with 1 win and 3 losses; and Finland last with 4 losses.
Finland and Norway were evenly matched, going point for point in the first pair of ends, trading 2 points each in the next pair of ends, then Norway scored 2 points and 1 point in the next ends with Finland answering back. Tied after eight ends, they went to extra ends which Norway won with 2 points.
Outpacing other curlers on the ice, United States looked like they might be able to come back to tie things after their second end against Canada, and then only being down one after the fourth end, but Canada went on to score points in the next three ends.
While Sweden won three of the seven ends they played against China, they were unable to beat the Chinese team who scored 2 points in two ends and 3 points in another end. In the fourth end, the 3 points came after a precision takeout by the Chinese skip Wang Haitao that cleared two Swedish stones off the sheet.
With the crowd behind them the entire match, Russia came from behind after the first end and third end to tie things up in the fifth end and take the lead. They allowed the South Koreans to score two points in the seventh end to force an eighth end. Russian skip Andrei Smirnov cleared a South Korean stone sitting in front of three Russian stones off the sheet that gave the Russians a two point lead.
The United States has not medaled at the past two Paraympic Games, with their best finish a fourth at the 2010 Games. Of the United States's curling team, two are returning wheelchair curling Paralympic veterans. James Joseph, the second, competed at the 2010 Winter Paralympics. The skip and lead (curling)|lead, competed in 2004 Summer Paralympics where she won a bronze medal. David Palmer, the third, is competing at his first games after having a fourth place finish at the 2013 World Championships in Russia and a fifth place finish at the 2012 World Championships in South Korea. Alternate and native Meghan Lino is also at her first Paralympic Games after taking up the sport in 2009.
Sweden's team has three team members who competed at the 2010 Games in 1988 Summer Paralympics|1988, 1992, and metroprolol was a drug he had been using for 4 or 5 years, and was unhappy that his doctor prescribed the blood pressure reducing drug because he would not have intentionally taken a banned substance.
The 2014 Games are the first Paralympics for Russia's wheelchair curling team. Alternate Oksana Slesarenko from and skip Andrei Smirnov also from Yekaterinburg have the most experience on the team, both having taken up the sport in 2003, and competing at the 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2011, 2012, and 2013 World Championships.
Team Canada includes all five members of their 2013 World Championship winning team, including 63-year-old skip Jim Armstrong, 51-year-old Dennis John Thiessen, 52-year-old Ina Forrest, 47-year-old Sonja Gaudet, and 37-year-old Mark Ideson. Gaudet is the only wheelchair curling Paralympian with two gold medals, having won them in 2006 and 2010. Teammates Armstrong and Thiessen were part of the 2010 gold medal winning team. Gaudet also has gold medals from the 2009, 2011, and 2013 World Championships. While Armstrong was inducted into the Canadian Curling Hall of Fame in 1990 for his accomplishments in able bodied curling, Gaudet was the first wheelchair-only curler to be inducted when she was part of the 2013 class.
South Korea has two returning 2010 Games silver medalists, Kang Mi-Suk and Kim Myung-Jin. Both originally played other sports before taking up curling. Kang played and Kim played wheelchair basketball.
On Saturday, Russia beat China 5–4, South Korea lost to Norway 0–10, Canada beat Great Britain 6–3, and Slovakia defeated the United States 6–4 in the morning session. Sweden beat Finland 7–6, Canada beat Russia 5–4, the United States lost to South Korea 5–9, and Norway lost to China 3–7. In the morning session yesterday, the United States defeated Norway 8–5, Sweden lost to Great Britain by a score of 4–6, China lost to Slovakia 3–8, and Finland lost to Russia 4–7. In the afternoon session yesterday, Canada defeated Sweden 7–4, Finland lost to Slovakia 6–9, and Great Britain beat South Korea by a score of 8–4.
Unlike able-bodied curling|anchor=Sweeping|sweeping. Another curler often sits behind the stone thrower to hold their chair in place while they execute their throw. Unlike a number of other Paralympic sports, there is only one classification in wheelchair curling and a variety of lower body disabilities compete in the sport. South Koreans Kim Myung-Jin and Kim Jong-Pan, Swede Kristina Ulander, Team USA's Meghan Lino, Patrick McDonald, and David Palmer, and Russians Alexander Shevchenko, Svetlana Pakhomova, Oksana Slesarenko, Andrei Smirnov, and Marat Romanov have spinal cord injuries. Canadian Jim Armstrong has injured knees. Canadian Ina Forrest lost her leg in a farming accident. Team USA's James Joseph has a limb deficiency. Article 2: On Wednesday in UEFA Euro 2016, Iceland defeated Austria 2–1, Hungary drew against Portugal 3–3, Italy lost 0–1 to Republic of Ireland and Belgium defeated Sweden 1–0. Hungary, Italy, Republic of Ireland, Belgium, Portugal and Iceland qualified for the Last 16 knockout phase.
File photo of Cristiano Ronaldo, who scored a brace against Hungary as the match ended in a goalless draw.
Iceland qualified for Last 16 knockout phase, while Austria was eliminated winning only one point in a goalless draw against Portugal.
Portugal's all three matches ended in a draw in the group stage. Both Hungary and Portugal have qualified for the Last 16 knockout phase.
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__NOTOC__ | 1 |
Article 1: Two six-year-old children caused emergency services to be called out in Oelde, Germany, yesterday. They had taken an old computer case, with a radioactivity symbol and warning notice that they had printed, affixed to the side, to create a "nuclear reactor".
Radiation warning symbol.svg|thumb|left|The international radiation hazard symbol.The boys abandoned their plaything in the street to take a break at home. It was encountered by a passer-by, who called out the emergency services. The children later returned to their play to find the street cordoned off by police and fire services, who were warning surrounding residents to stay in their homes via local radio.
It was not until later, when the children's parents read news reports on the Internet of the incident, that it was realized that the children's play "nuclear reactor" had been the cause of the incident. Article 2: Destruction in Odesa after the Russian attack.
Ukraine reported a minimum of 20 dead and over 70 injured in , Ukraine after a Friday Russian missile strike.
According to the office of the Iskander-M missiles fired from the Russia-annexed peninsula of Crimea. Among the dead are an employee of the State Service of Ukraine for Emergency Situations (SSES) and a paramedic. Civil infrastructure was damaged: residential buildings, outbuildings, vehicles.
As the State Emergency Service clarified, Russian troops fired missiles at Odesa twice. The second missile was fired when rescuers were eliminating the consequences of the first explosion. As a result of the second strike, a service employee was killed. Among the victims are seven employees of the State Emergency Service. Oleg Kiper clarified that there were seriously wounded. Medical workers were also injured. The Ukrainian investigation began an investigation under the article on violation of the laws and customs of war associated with premeditated murder (Part 2 of Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).
In Odesa and the region, mourning was declared on March 16. | 0 |
Article 1: File photo of Eric Bailly
On Wednesday, English football club Manchester United F.C. signed 22-year-old Ivorian central-defender Spanish club Article 2: __NOTOC__
On July 17, Russian Wikinews attended Russian travel writer Viktor Pinchuk's presentation on his book , describing his travel in that nation, in the V. A. Zhukovsky Library, in Simferopol, Crimea.
Pinchuk described his method, similar to backpacking. With islands Shikoku and small among his destinations, Pinchuk said practicing "hobo tourism" was difficult in the weather conditions of this winter trip.
Attendees took a "virtual tour" of Japan by reviewing photos.
Japan for free, poster.jpg|A poster for the presentation.
Presentation of the book "Japan for free" (1).jpg|Introduction.
Presentation of the book "Japan for free" (2).jpg|A slideshow.
Japan for free.jpg|The book.
Presentation of the book "Japan for free" (4).jpg
Presentation of the book "Japan for free" (3).jpg
Presentation of the book "Japan for free" (5).jpg
Presentation of the book "Japan for free" (6).jpg|Pinchuk.
Presentation of the book "Japan for free" (7).jpg|Pinchuk autographing a copy donated to the library.
Presentation of the book "Japan for free" (8).jpg|The author and attendees. | 0 |
Article 1: Parlsquareprotests.jpg|thumb|185px|left|File photo of anti-war protestors in Parliament Square. Taken in 2003
United Kingdom Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced today that the independent inquiry into the Iraq War will be held in private. It has been called for by opposition MP's and Labour MP's since the invasion and it was announced today that it will start next month.
It is planned to take at least a year, according to Mr. Brown, and is being held in private for national security matters and to protect Britain's military capability.
Protestors have reacted angrily to the news, believing the government will try to hide blame. Article 2: Caroline Lucas, Green MP.
The UK House of Commons|House of Commons is to discuss whether to schedule a debate on reform of Britain's drug laws, after a petition calling for an independent review of the laws reached 100,000 signatures this week. The petition was started by Green Party MP Misuse of Drugs Act 1971.
The petition was backed by the online campaigning organisation Russell Brand, businessman Sting (musician)|Sting, and broadcaster .
Lucas said Britain now spends £3 billion annually on enforcing drugs policy and an assessment of "whether Britain's current approach is value for money or money wasted" is required. She also said: "The Misuse of Drugs Act is hopelessly out of date. It has never been reviewed, or undergone a cost-benefit analysis. In Wales alone, an estimated £3 billion a year is spent fighting the war on drugs, to little effect. Over half of the people in prison are thought to have serious drug problems, and yet we continue to fail to treat drug addiction as the serious health problem it is."
Russell Brand — who has spoken publicly of his use of drugs — said: "Almost 2,000 young people die in the UK each year from taking illegal drugs. But leading police, doctors, and politicians agree prohibition has completely failed to curb addiction."
Deputy Prime Minister stated his support for the review in a newspaper editorial: "The UK can lead the debate in Europe and Europe can lead the debate in the world. But we must be prepared to start afresh with a new mindset and be prepared to do things differently."
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Article 1: UN Reform
A South Korean official expressed doubts over United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan's apparent support for a permanent Security Council seat for Japan, and attention has been drawn to widespread mistrust of Japan by Chinese — although the Chinese government has not commented directly against Japan.
Asked to comment on Annan supporting Japan gaining the seat, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Liu Jianchao said, "I think reform of the UN Security Council should have its eyes on increasing work efficiency ... and at the same increasing the representation of developing countries."
Four hundred-thousand Chinese have signed an on-line petition opposing Japan's bid, and a poll last year put opposition within China at 95 percent. Resentment still runs high after Japan's invasion of China from 1931 to 1945 led to death or injury of up to 35 million Chinese, and sexual slavery of tens- to hundreds-of-thousands of women in mainland Asia.
The UN reforms currently being discussed are the largest changes since the body's formation 60 years ago.
Last year, Japan, Germany, Brazil, and India formed a lobby group supporting each other in bids for seats on the influential Security Council. But North and South Korea oppose Japan gaining a seat, Italy opposes Germany, Pakistan opposes India, and Mexico and Argentina oppose Brazil.
The United States, Britain, France, Russia, and China are permanent members of the council, with the other 10 seats filled by other countries, selected from regional groups for two-year terms.
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* Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945). Wikipedia Article 2: Reports have surfaced that officials from North Korea may meet with officials from the United States in New York City to talk about the sanctions against North Korea and other problems between the two countries. The meeting may take place sometime next week and is aimed at getting 6-party talks, regarding North Korea's nuclear program, back on track.
Despite the reports by media sources, Washington D.C. has denied that any plans of the sort exist.
"We are not aware of any plans for a meeting," said a spokesman for the White House, Tony Fratto.
Officials at the State Department refused to comment on the reports.
"I cannot comment on the reports," said a spokesman for the State Department, Kurtis Cooper.
On October 31, 2006, officials from the U.S. met with North Korean officials in Beijing, which led the North Koreans to agree to return to 6-party talks regarding North Korea's nuclear program. | 1 |
Article 1: The headquarters of RBS in Edinburgh
Sir Fred Goodwin, the former head of Royal Bank of Scotland has said he will reduce his pension by up to £200,000 a year, leaving him with approximately £350,000 a year.
He has been heavily criticised for receiving a large pension, while being blamed for contributing to RBS' recent issues, which is now owned mainly by the UK government, after a £20 billion bailout last autumn. RBS has previously threatened legal action to recoup some of the money.
In October 2008, Goodwin agreed to a deal with the bank that allowed him to take his whole pension of £703,000 a year. There was no penalty for claiming it early, at the age of 50. Both the board of RBS and the UK government were criticised for failing to do more to prevent Goodwin gaining such a large pension. Article 2: WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikers in June.
Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) officials Friday held their first meeting, in California, US, after the beginning of a writers' strike on May 2, with participants speaking on a framework for negotiations and "a preview of the issues each side intends to bring back to the table upon resumption." The WGA's representatives said in a memo to unionists there was "no agreement" as "the AMPTP said they needed to consult with their member studios".
The AMPTP declined to comment to .
The WGA claimed the AMPTP planned to propose the parties replicate, on issues common to both disputes, the AMPTP agreement with the in June. The WGA has rejected this idea.
The WGA memo said Lombardini "stated they were willing to increase their offer on a few writer-specific TV minimums – and willing to talk about AI – but that they were not willing to engage on the preservation of the Residual (entertainment industry)|residuals."
The AMPTP has rejected the WGA's proposals on the writers' room question as a "hiring quota".
"She did not indicate willingness to address screenwriter issues, Appendix A issues, and many of the other proposals that remain on our list," the WGA continued.
The WGA memo said if it and the AMPTP come to agreement first, it planned to let members continue striking until actors' union 's dispute also concluded.
After the meeting, the WGA said the AMPTP demanded a on it but leaked word to industry magazines.
Alliance President Carol Lombardini, the AMPTP's top representative at the meeting, initially said it should not occur; among them Sony Pictures CEO Puck (media company)|Puck. | 0 |
Article 1: 'London' – The former British prime minister Leonard James Callaghan, the Baron of Cardiff has died at the age of 92, just a day before his ninety-third birthday. He died at his home in East Sussex, leaving two daughters and a son. His wife, Audrey, died just eleven days ago.
James Callaghan was prime minister from 1976-79 before Margaret Thatcher became prime minster in 1979 after the surprise resignation of Harold Wilson. His premiership could be considered to include some of the bleakest times for Britain, since he was Prime Minister during the 1978-79 winter of discontent, when there were numerous strikes. However, his proudest achievement was the introduction of cat's eyes in Britain's roads when he was transport secretary.
Tributes including the prime minster Tony Blair saying he was a "giant" of the Labour movement. Former rival and prime minister Margaret Thatcher said he was a "formidable opponent". Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown said he was "mourned throughout the world" and "It was a commitment to public service that brought Jim Callaghan into Parliament in 1945, and while Jim rose to the top he never forgot his roots." Article 2: Richard Kenneth Guy, a British mathematician who has published over 300 papers in various mathematical fields, died on Monday at 103 years of age.
Guy in 2005
Guy was a mathematics professor at the University of Calgary prior to his death. He retired in 1982 but continued to regularly work at the Department of Mathematics and Statistics. In October 2016, the university celebrated Guy's 100th birthday. He was also an original director of the .
Guy has been associated with the discovery of a pattern called a "glider" in cellular automaton — a discrete model consisting of a grid of cells — devised by mathematician around 1970.
From roughly 1948 to 1951, Guy was the endings editor for Chess endgame|endgame studies. He was a co-inventor of the system for representation chess piece positions.
Guy and his wife Nancy Louise Thirian had three children, including computer scientist and mathematician . In his personal time, Richard Guy practiced mountaineering.
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Matemático britânico Richard K. Guy morre aos 103 anos | 1 |
Article 1: __NOTOC__
Yesterday in UEFA Euro 2016, Italy defeated Sweden 1–0 and assured their advancement to the knock-out stage. Croatia vs Czech Republic resulted in a 2–2 draw and Spain defeated Turkey 3–0 as scored twice. Spectators from the Croatian end threw flares before the final whistle.
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Italy faced Sweden in the first match of the day. Sweden led in terms of ball possession but, in the 88th minute, Éder scored for Italy. Italian captain Gianluigi Buffon was yellow carded in injury time as he delayed a goal-kick. Italy numerically assured their advancement to the knock-out stage by winning this game.
Croatia were 1–0 up at half time as Ivan Perišić scored in the 37th minute. FC Barcelona midfielder Ivan Rakitić scored a second goal for Croatia chipping the ball over just before the one hour mark. Later, Tomáš Necid equalised late in the match, having replaced .
In the 86th minute, spectators threw flares on the ground and delayed the game by five minutes. A hearing is scheduled to take place today.
Later, , president of the , said,
Turkish captain Nolito assisted Álvaro Morata, who scored a header. Three minutes later, Nolito scored the second goal of the match. Three minutes after half time, Morata scored from Jordi Alba's pass.
Spain won the game 3–0 and qualified for the Last 16 knockout phase.
David de Gea maintained a Gordon Banks. Article 2: On Sunday, in Spanish LaLiga's Alfredo Di Stéfano's fourteen.
Messi was left on the ground, bleeding after Marcelo's elbow hit his face in a clash. The Argentine was taken off-pitch, and later continued the game with a tissue paper in his mouth to stop bleeding. Just before the thirty minute mark, Los Blancos captain Sergio Ramos hit the woodwork from Marcelo's freekick, but the deflection was converted into a 1–0 lead by Casemiro. Five minutes later, Messi levelled for Barcelona dribbling against two Madrid defenders from Rakitić's assist.
Messi had not scored in the last six Clásicos. In the 39th minute, Welsh forward Gareth Bale, who became the third Briton to reach 100 appearances landmark in La Liga, was substituted following an injury. Marco Asensio replaced the Briton. Bale was out for the last two matches due to injury. David Beckham and , former forwards of Madrid and Barcelona respectively, previously made over 100 appearances in La Liga. At half time, Madrid had six attempts on target, as compared to Barça's one.
Madrid striker Karim Benzema missed a chance to score in the 52nd minute when Barcelona's shot-stopper André Gomes for . Casemiro was booked early in the match for bringing down Messi. He later fouled the Argentine in the 45th minute, but got away without receiving a second yellow.
Minutes later Toni Kroos lost mark of Rakitić as the Croatian faked a shot and scored a 20-yard goal from his left foot, putting the Blaugrana in the lead. In the 77th minute, Ramos was shown a straight red card for bringing down Messi. Barça defender Gerard Piqué missed a chance to make it 3–1 from Gomes' pass. was brought on for Benzema, and four minutes later, the Colombian scored from Marcelo's assist.
With only two minutes added for the injury time, Sergi Roberto's run from Barcelona's half was later converted to the match winning goal by Messi from Jordi Alba's assist scoring his 23rd goal in El Clásico. ter Stegen made twelve saves in the entire match, the most in the league since 2003–2004. Messi was booked for removing his jersey celebrating his 500th goal for Barcelona. He leads the race for the Spanish Golden Boot — — which he last won in 2013.
After the match, Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane said,
The Court of Arbitration for Sports turned down Barcelona's appeal to play Neymar for El Clásico, who received a three-match ban after sarcastically applauding an official after a red card against es|Spanish language|Estoy preparado para jugar el partido con Neymar o sin él. Tendréis que esperar al partido para ver si me arriesgo a ponerlo.|I am prepared to play the match with Neymar or without him. You will have to wait for the game to see if I risk putting him.
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Article 1: The United Kingdom House of Commons voted 272–285 last night against proposed possible military action against Syria following claims the Assad regime used chemical weapons against civilians. The government motion was defeated by opposition from the Labour Party, as well as rebel MPs from both the Conservative and Liberal Democratic parties.
David Cameron argued the recent events in Syria were a "humanitarian catastrophe, and if there are no consequences for it, there is nothing to stop Assad and other dictators from using these weapons again and again". The motion rejected by the Commons said the House "agrees that a strong humanitarian response is required from the international community and that this may, if necessary, require military action", and such action would be "legal, proportionate and focused on saving lives by preventing and deterring further use of Syria's chemical weapons".
Thirty Conservative MPs and nine Liberal Democrats voted against their party against military intervention. Ed Miliband, leader of the opposition Labour Party, said the proposal to go to war was an "ill-thought through action", it lacked international support, and Cameron had acted in a "cavalier and reckless" manner.
Deputy Prime Minister and Liberal Democratic leader Nick Clegg said the sole intention of the government's motion was to "relieve humanitarian suffering by deterring and disrupting the further use of chemical weapons. Nothing more, nothing less. Not invasion. Not regime change... President Obama's intentions are highly limited and so are ours."
The former foreign secretary and Conservative MP Sir Malcolm Rifkind said during the debate: "The Assad regime in Damascus are watching very carefully as to whether they will get away with what they have done."
Opposition came also from Britain's smaller parties: Caroline Lucas from the Green Party said the actions "cannot be justified", and expressed concern that the United Kingdom would be "flouting international law" by going into Syria. Respect MP George Galloway argued there was "no compelling evidence" of Syrian government involvement in the chemical weapons attack.
Labour proposed an opposing motion that called for the government to present "compelling" evidence before action, which was rejected as well as the government's motion. The defeat of the government motion for military intervention has surprised some. Shadow Defence Secretary said "Parliament is entirely unpredictable sometimes and I don't think many people saw this coming."
Philip Hammond, the Defence Secretary, confirmed that following the vote, the country would not participate in any action in Syria, but he noted he expected the United States to carry on without the UK, anticipating "the US and other countries will continue to look at responses to the chemical attack. They will be disappointed that Britain will not be involved. I don't expect that the lack of British participation will stop any action."
Hammond noted the rejection of military intervention would strain the "special relationship" between Britain and the United States.
The former leader of the British Army, General Lord Dannatt, said the vote in the Commons was a "victory for common sense".
The United States has said they will still seek military action against the Syrian regime. US defense secretary Chuck Hagel said the US would seek to build an "international coalition". Caitlin Hayden, spokeswoman for the White House, reacted to the British vote by saying: "The US will continue to consult with the UK Government — one of our closest allies and friends."
Hayden said that President Obama "will be guided by what is in the best interests of the United States", and that Obama "believes that there are core interests at stake for the United States... countries who violate international norms regarding chemical weapons need to be held accountable".
Representative , a Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said the White House had told them "beyond a doubt ... chemical weapons were used, and used intentionally by the Assad regime", and that there is evidence from intercepted communications of involvement by "high-level Syrian officials".
The Parliamentary vote on intervention in Syria is on the front pages of many of the national newspapers in Britain, with The Times claiming Cameron was "humiliated" by the vote. Article 2: youtube-dl's GitHub repository currently shows the repository is disabled notice.
On Friday, code hosting and sharing website GitHub blocked the public access to command-line. The blockade came after GitHub received a Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) take-down notice from the (RIAA). After stripping the metadata from the notice, GitHub published the take-down notice on their site.
Initially started in July 2008 by Ricardo Garcia, youtube-dl is a script written in Python which can download videos from multiple websites including YouTube, Vimeo. youtube-dl is a FLOSS software and is under . Currently, the repository on GitHub is locked for viewers other than maintainers of the project.
RIAA's DMCA notice alleged the script's purpose of existence was to "circumvent the technological protection measures used by authorized streaming services such as YouTube" and "reproduce and distribute music videos and sound recordings owned by our member companies without authorization for such use".
youtube-dl has multiple unit tests in its source code, which test whether the software works in different circumstances or not. Some of the tests include checking if the script can download Creative Commons licensed videos, videos which did not have square pixels, videos with no age restriction, "offensive to some audiences" per YouTube community and age-restricted videos. One of the tests included the of some copyrighted songs. Citing this test, RIAA's take-down notice claimed "comments in the youtube-dl source code make clear that the source code was designed and is marketed for the purpose of circumventing YouTube's technological measures".
RIAA's notice published by GitHub alleged violation of 17 U.S. Code § 1201 Circumvention of copyright protection systems which says "No person shall circumvent a technological measure that effectively controls access to a work protected under this title". RIAA listed a number of forks of youtube-dl and requested GitHub via the notice they all be made inaccessible.
The notice did not list any incident of anyone using youtube-dl to download or share copyrighted material, nor mention any damages that actually occurred. Unremarked by the notice, YouTube allows videos to be licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license. When a copyright holder chooses to release their work, be it a photograph, a video, or audio, under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license, they allow everyone to freely own, share or modify the work as long as the reusers properly attribute the author of the work. YouTube also hosts many audio and video recordings in the public domain which can be used for any purpose without any restrictions.
Using a browser, one can simply right click on a photo, video, or audio on the internet to download it.
youtube-dl is used by thousands of people around the world. Multiple Creative Commons-licensed and public domain videos on fair use, or for evidence.
Screenshot showing how youtube-dl is used to download a YouTube video in the public domain.
youtube-dl comes with a small web-browser would behave while receiving video data from the server. The script has "extractors" for various websites to handle videos from different sources. Whenever something is displayed on the user's screen, the device has a copy of that content. Web browsers "download" data while surfing the web, though most of it is not persistent on the device. It is possible to download copyrighted photos by using a web-browser. The way the works, there are no technological prevention measures to prevent recording and sharing of content such as RIAA talks about in the notice. Photos and texts can be downloaded by taking screenshots, videos by screen recording tools, and audio by recording on a tape if not an audio recording software.
Multiple users expressed their disappointment on Twitter and git as it was intended, as a distributed network, rather than rely on one single proprietary server". Git is decentralised version-tracking software which is used by a large number of software companies and projects. It is possible to host one's own git server for software development. While Microsoft's GitHub is a centralised git server, development of software using git does not require a GitHub account.
Soon after the public access to the repository was locked, multiple users started sharing the source code via self-hosted Tor sites and via the Torrent protocol leading to a Streisand effect. Streisand effect is when a measure to information causes further spread of that information. The binary files of the software are still available on its website for users to download. Some people came up with esoteric ways to share the source code, by converting the compressed code into photographs and providing shell commands to convert to the source code.
GitHub's DMCA repository, where the takedown notice was published for public viewing, was subject to contant vandalism from multiple GitHub users. One user submitted a Merge (version control)|merging the source code of youtube-dl along with the DMCA repository. This enabled users to view youtube-dl's source code from within the DMCA repository, provided they know the commit id.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation said on Twitter "Youtube-dl is a legitimate tool with a world of a lawful uses. Demanding its removal from Github is a disappointing and counterproductive move by the RIAA." Richard Stallman, the founder of the Free Software Foundation, has been highly critical of DRM (digital rights management, the subject of the DMCA) for many years now.
Wikinews reached out to Sergey M․, one of the maintainers of youtube-dl script, however Sergey said he "won't give any comments at this time". Later, he shared an update on the IRC channel. Sergey said, "they require complete removal of so called YouTube's rolling cipher implementation ... GitHub requires in order to reinstate the repo ... under this conditions I could reinstate it in Saturday/Sunday already but this is an unsatisfactory outcome". He also said, "I can't guarantee whether or not we will bend over them considering the situation with @phihag Philipp Hagemeister but we'll see soon what we can do in order to keep the max we have and mitigate potential legal issues at the same time".
EFF is yet to respond to Wikinews queries. Wikinews also reached out to Philipp Hagemeister, a former maintainer and contributor of the youtube-dl project to discuss this takedown.
Philipp Hagemeister had previously maintained youtube-dl's source code
'When did you get to know about the takedown notice and what were your initial reactions?'
I saw the takedown notice along with anyone else, on reddit. Since I am no longer involved with the youtube-dl project (except for occasional contributions, my maintainership ended in 2016), I don't know any details.
'Does YouTube implement DRM for videos not under Creative Commons license, and if so, how does youtube-dl bypass it? Could you please elaborate the procedure?'
YouTube implements DRM for YouTube Movies. youtube-dl does not support those.
YouTube has multiple non-DRM video delivery protocols. I'm not up to date about specifics; my last dabbling in this was in 2015.
One of these protocols is described here. YouTube uses to compute parts of the URLs. youtube-dl executes this JavaScript, just like a web browser.
'Could you also explain in brief how youtube-dl functions, and how the maintainers had intended it to be used?'
youtube-dl downloads and plays videos and music, just like any other web browser, from over 1000 different services. Its uses are varied: It enables video playback on many devices (e.g. ) where the video services don't work properly, it makes high-quality video playable for people with a bad or no Internet connection, it enables disabled users to use tools to play videos, and it is used for archival and research.
'What do you think of the DMCA notice?'
I think it is not warranted because youtube-dl is entirely legal. As the DMCA notice has no effect for me personally, I'm not really the right person to address it.
'Why were the copyrighted tests in the source code? Could they be replaced?'
I'm not sure why, but my guess is that users requested support for these videos and thus they were added as test cases. They can be removed trivially, without losing any function of youtube-dl.
'Are you aware Electronic Frontier Foundation said it was a "disappointing and counterproductive move"? What do you think should be the next steps?'
Yes, and I concur. I'm no longer involved in the project. If I were, I would probably just remove the test cases, block these music videos (RIAA is not worth the trouble for me, that can be done by other projects), and get the project back online.
I understand people who think differently. | 1 |
Article 1: These images of Saturn's south pole, taken by two different instruments on Cassini, show the hurricane-like storm swirling NASA's Cassini Spacecraft has captured images of a massive hurricane on the planet Saturn. The storm is located on Saturn's south pole. This type of event has never been observed on another planet except for Earth.
"It looks like a hurricane, but it doesn't behave like a hurricane. Whatever it is, we're going to focus on the eye of this storm and find out why it's there," said Doctor Andrew Ingersoll, a member of Cassini's imaging team at the California Institute of Technology located in Pasadena.
The storm is approximately 5,000 miles across or roughly two-thirds the diameter of Earth and is stationary. The winds in the storm, which are blowing clockwise are reaching about 350 miles per hour and two spiral arms of clouds are extending from the center of the storm. Scientists say that the storm's clouds are anywhere between three to five times taller and larger than any clouds found on Earth.
It is not known what has caused the storm to form. Article 2: Українська Моравія.jpg|thumb|left|A tractor tilling a field in Vitalii Bashkatov
On Friday, the European Commission (EC) reached a deal with European Union (EU) member states Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia on imports of wheat, maize, , and sunflower seeds from Ukraine.
The agreement provided for 100 million euros to compensate farmers and allowed the five nations to prevent the Ukrainian products from entering their domestic markets. The five, in turn, agreed to allow free transit of the goods through their countries. Additionally, the EU extended June's one-year removal of duties on Ukrainian products for another year on Friday, pending approval by the European Parliament and members.
, the bloc's top trade official, announced the deal: "I'm glad to announce that we have reached a political agreement concerning Ukrainian agrifood imports in the EU. We've agreed with the five neighboring EU member states and Ukraine on how we'll tackle the situation."
EC President said the deal "preserves both Ukraine's exports capacity so it continues feeding the world, and our farmers' livelihoods."
Polish Prime Minister said: "We have just now finalized agreements with the European Union regarding the ban on the import of these agricultural products, which above all led to destabilization in the Polish market."
Cheaper products caused an excess of supply in these countries' domestic markets after the EU lifted those tariffs amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, stating it would enable the products to reach their target markets in the Middle East and Africa while Black Sea ports remained contested.
Logistical costs hindered re-exports of Ukrainian goods, driving down local prices and prompting farmer protests. On April 4, the EC adopted an "emergency support measure" providing over 56 million euros to Poland, Romania, and Bulgaria to help farmers but acknowledged this only partially covered losses.
This did not assuage the farmers, and Poland announced a ban on imports from Ukraine on April 15, followed by Hungary the same day, then Slovakia on April 17 and Bulgaria on April 19, with an exception for products en route to other nations through Bulgaria. Romania did not enact restrictions, but appealed to the EU for "preventative measures" on products from Ukraine.
"Bulgaria is in solidarity with Ukraine, but a local glut is being created on the agricultural market, because instead of export corridors our countries are becoming warehouses," Bulgaria's Minister of Agriculture, Yavor Gechev, said before his nation imposed its ban.
Citing its nature, members — and the EU itself — condemned the bans. Arianna Podestà of the EC declared to CNN: "It is important to underline that trade policy is of EU exclusive competence and, therefore, unilateral actions are not acceptable."
"The flow of Ukrainian agro-export is a matter of survival for the Ukrainian economy, heavily impacted by the full-scale Russian war of aggression," Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister said prior to the deal. "So, our common priority should be an extension of the suspension of import duties, quotas, and trade defense measures on Ukrainian exports to the European Union." | 0 |
Article 1: Lord Howard, the former Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative Party leader, and Chancellor of the Exchequer, set out their opposing views regarding the UK's continuing membership of the Confederation of British Industry's (CBI) annual dinner on Wednesday.
Logo of the CBI.
The dinner was held as the UK is expected to vote on the matter in next month's EU referendum. Lord Howard encouraged those in attendance to vote for the UK to leave the EU, while Mr Darling was speaking in favour of a vote to remain.
Responding to the CBI calling for the UK to remain in the EU, Lord Howard referred to the organisation's previous calls to become a full member of the Euro, saying these calls had been wrong, and suggesting this reduces the credibility of the CBI's current stance. Lord Howard also said if the UK left the EU and didn't replace it with some trade deal, which he described as "inconceivable", then the UK's exports would face EU import tariffs of 2.4% on average. He compared this to the UK's net contribution to the EU's budget, which he said was "equivalent to a seven per cent tariff."
Mr Darling reminded the audience of warnings from Bank of England, and International Monetary Fund, that leaving the EU could lead to a recession in the UK. Mr Darling said this "would be disastrous for working people's life chances and living standards".
The referendum is expected to take place on June 23.
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* Article 2: Members of Parliament (MPs) for the Labour Party, a political party in the Jeremy Corbyn.
Jeremy Corbyn April 2016
The vote follows over 20 members of the 2016 UK EU referendum|last Thursday's referendum on the UK's membership on the (EU). The Labour party had campaigned for the UK to remain in the EU.
During the vote 172 Labour MPs voted in favour of the motion, while 40 voted against it. Four ballots were spoilt, and thirteen MPs chose not to vote.
Following the vote, Mr Corbyn refused to resign, saying he was elected leader "by 60% of Labour members and supporters, and I will not betray them by resigning." He also stated the vote was not binding.
After the referendum last Thursday the UK's David Cameron, also announced his intention to resign by October.
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Article 1: Nauru offshore processing facility in 2012.
Nauru offshore processing facility in 2012.
The of the island nation of Nauru endorsed rise of the cost of an application for single-entry three-month media visa from $200 to $8,000 last Thursday.
The rise followed a scandal last weekend involving 60 Lebanese asylum seekers voluntarily deciding to return home from the , an Australian immigration detention facility, after facing harsh physical conditions and disorientation.
Nauru's Government Information Office Director Joanna Olsson appeared to be unaware that the new visa fee had yet to take effect, writing an email to a visa applicant about the new fee last Tuesday: "Sorry for the late response but yes we are granting media visas. The fee is $8000 per visa, single entry valid for 3 months. The visa fee is not refundable if the application is not successful." She also claimed the new fee had been implemented "a couple of months ago", The reported.
On the contrary, on Thursday during a meeting, Nauru's Principal Immigration Officer Ernest Stephen said the price change was "not official" and the price rise had not yet passed into law through the . Stephen said only three or four Nauru media visas were granted last year.
A member of Nauru Opposition Group, Mathew Batsiua, claimed the move was an oppression of journalistic freedom. "They the Nauru authorities certainly bully our local media in terms of what they can show, who they can interview, and this is another illustration of that kind of behaviour in terms of bullying media and avoiding accountability. ... This hiking up of fees for journalists coming in to Nauru is a step in that direction, and we think that it's the wrong move and we're certainly opposing it."
The rise of the visa fee followed a recent scandal involving the majority of 60 Lebanese asylum seekers, targeted by people smugglers, deciding to return home from the Nauru and neighbouring detention centres after a discussion with Australian government adviser Jamal Rifi on the weekend of January 4.
The (UNHCR) reviewed the detention centre in December 2012, reporting poor physical conditions:
The UNHCR has also cited delays processing the refugee applications, lack of legal counseling, health issues including trauma and mental health cases, and responsibility of both Australia and Nauru for the treatment. In another review in November last year, UHCR reported improved physical conditions while criticizing progress on reception conditions and refugee applications processing.
Yesterday Australian officials told a Pakistani refugee living in Australia that a refugee application could take up to ten years to process, while he was applying for refuge for his brothers following death of his parents and wife in Pakistan. Article 2: Lefortovo Prison in 2016.
On Friday, investigators for Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) charged journalist The Wall Street Journal, with espionage.
Gershkovich, 31, "categorically denied" the charges, saying he was only reporting, according to a source.
US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican, wrote in a joint statement Friday: "Let there be no mistake: journalism is not a crime...We demand the baseless, fabricated charges against Mr. Gershkovich be dropped and he be immediately released and reiterate our condemnation of the Russian government's continued attempts to intimidate, repress, and punish independent journalists and civil society voices."
The FSB arrested Gershkovich in Cold War.
The Journal has called for an end to the detention of its "trusted and dedicated reporter" and called it "a vicious affront to a free press, and should spur outrage in all free people and governments throughout the world."
On April 3, national security spokesperson John Kirby said in a briefing: "We will do everything we can to get Evan home ... I don't have anything in terms of details of what it would take specifically to negotiate with the Russians on his release."
The next day, , press secretary for the US president, told media: "Evan is not a spy; Evan has never been a spy ... This is a case that is a priority for the president."
Gershkovich first met with his attorneys April 4. As of the following day, he was jailed at Washington Post said Lefortovo is notorious for its isolation of prisoners; it was constructed for the military of the KGB|foreign=force. | 1 |
Article 1: arab summit|annual summit Wednesday with no new initiatives for peace with Israel. The summit, held in Algeria, coincided with the 60th anniversary of the Arab League.
The summit rejected Jordan's plan to normalise relations with Israel by instead sticking to the 2002 peace plan. That plan promised to normalise relations only after an Israeli withdrawal from occupied territories, the creation of a Palestinian state, and the settlement of Palestinian refugees.
The summit announced the creation of an Arab Parliament to be based in the Syrian capital of Damascus. It will contain four members from each of the 22 Arab League states.
Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi, the longest serving Arab leader at the meeting, caused tensions by telling the Palestinian delegation he thought both "Palestinians and Israelis are stupid." He also reiterated his call for a single state solution, saying "the solution I think is to have a single state. We cannot have two states." He also addressed terrorism, claiming it was the result of "oppression, injustice, arrogance, insults, contempt and the humiliation of this Arab nation."
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* Article 2: In a judgement released today Mr Justice Green, sitting in the High Court in London, spoke of his "very considerable unease" as he rejected an application by two defendants in a Thai death penalty case. The pair sought a Metropolitan Police report they hoped could assist their defence.
The murders occurred on the picturesque resort island of Koh Tao, pictured here from file.
The court has expedited the case. Burmese nationals Zaw Lin and Wai Phyo, both 22, are currently on trial accused of murdering David Miller, 24, from Jersey, and Hannah Witheridge, 23, from England. With the defence case due to begin shortly and continue until mid- or late September the court has issued its judgement today following a hearing on Friday.
The case dates to September last year when the victims were found murdered on a beach. Witheridge had been raped. The case attracted worldwide attention with Lin and Phyo confessing, before re-enacting the killing in front of the press.
The accused claim the confessions were tortured out of them and the ongoing trial is unfair. UK Prime Minister David Cameron intervened, speaking to Thai Prime Minister Police Act 1996.
A team was duly dispatched and prepared a report with the intent to use it for assisting the victims' families. UK police were expressly forbidden, at a ministerial level, to provide any assistance to Thai authorities as the case involves the death penalty. Due to established UK policy on foreign death penalty cases, the report was also not shared with Thailand. It is this report that Lin and Phyo were seeking.
The sjiong via
Using the the defendants asked police for this report to assist their defence, and were denied. That decision was the one challenged unsuccessfully in the High Court. The case pits the two accused trying to defend a death penalty case against the possibility of jeopardising international relations; Thai police co-operated, but only in light of an agreement the report would be confidential.
Legal charity Reprieve, who assisted the two men, said in a statement "Concerns about the conduct of the Thai investigation and the safety of any convictions resulting have been raised from the very beginning... only the defence lawyers in Thailand are in a position to judge whether the information could be of assistance." Mr Justice Green's judgement acknowledges he did not know "how the accused might structure their defences" or details about what evidence had been or would be involved.
Thai Prime Minister Chan-o-cha, pictured here in December, was directly involved in negotiations that led to the report being produced.
Both men say they were starved, suffocated, stripped naked, exposed to cold temperatures, beaten, threatened, and denied legal representation. The deny any misconduct. Mr Justice Green read the report himself and decided not to release it as it was of no assistance to the pair.
The report is known to contain some material disputed by Lin and Phyo. It says they repeated their confessions at various times, including in court with legal representation, before retracting them. It also says they have not backed up their torture claims with evidence, medical or otherwise.
Mr Justice Green said the report described "in many respects ... no more than the routine conduct of a serious crime investigation. This is not a Report which contains, for instance, state secrets." He also spoke of his distance from the ongoing trial, prompting him to remark of his "very considerable unease" and having to do "the best I could" — not "a comfortable process".
Noting "the issues of both law and fact are complex, novel and difficult" Mr Justice Green's judgement notes that, before even hearing the case he promised permission to appeal would be granted, if requested, whatever the outcome. He also promised a swift Court of Appeal hearing to comply with Thai trial time constraints. "The stakes are very high for both sides", he added.
"In my judgment the ," the judgement reads, "and in particular the principles of natural justice and fairness, would in a case such as this which involves the right to life, and the right to a fair trial, as well as powerful countervailing issues of public interest, compel the court to apply the most intense level of anxious scrutiny to the facts to ensure that the accused were not prejudiced."
Mr Justice Green also ruled the pair, in principal, "have a perfectly proper right to seek access to the personal data for the purpose of using it subsequently in their defence in criminal proceedings", calling the case one about "fundamental rights".
Rosa Curling, who represented both men in the London court, has said they would not appeal. She said Lin and Phyo are "disappointed" but "are reassured that at least a British judge has now looked at the information held by the Metropolitan Police, applying anxious scrutiny, and determined that it would not assist them in their ongoing proceedings in Thailand."
Wikinews has contacted the Metropolitan Police, usually responsible for policing London, for a statement and is awaiting a response. | 0 |
Article 1: In the past few days, tension has been increasing due to conflict between Ukraine and the Russian Federation which has led to the United States, the France increasing pressure on Russia to remove their troops from .
Wikinews interviewed specialists in Russian foreign policy and specialists in international law about the legality of Russia's actions and the consequences of any sanctions imposed by nation economies.
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::*'Burbank': Yes, the borders of the Ukrainian state were drawn up in 1991 and reinforced by the 1994 Budapest accords. See the article by Paul Goble on these accords.
::*'Brandist': It would be hard to describe it otherwise. That said, however, it is quite extraordinary hypocrisy for the US and UK to strike moral poses about this, especially after Afghanistan. Russia clearly has strategic interests in the region, and there is a large Russian-speaking population in much of Ukraine, a majority in Crimea and an important part of the east of the country, and the arrangement after the collapse of the NATO expansion took place. None of this is to excuse Russian actions, but they cannot be understood without focus on the 'great game' of which it is part.
::*'Blank': By any standard Russia's actions represent a violation of Ukrainian sovereignty and integrity, a premeditated break with numerous treaties signed by Russia guaranteeing Ukraine's security, integrity, and sovereignty, and thus Premier Yatsenyuk is right these are acts of war.
::*'Kotsonis': On the surface it seems so. Mind you, it is complicated because Russia has been given rights to the bases on the Crimea and this may give Russia the pretext for a larger intervention. But it does not seem to be a clear-cut legal case for intervention and everyone understands that this is Russia smarting over the loss of an ally in Yanukovich and guarding its own back yard interests.
File photo of interviewee Yanni Kotsonis.
Are we going to see a proxy war between the United States and Russia?
::*'Morris': No.
::*'Burbank': I doubt that we will have a real war, but note that the Russians who falsely accused the "West" and the U.S. for instigating the political activism of Ukrainians (denying that Ukrainians themselves wanted to change their corrupt government for a more democratic and inclusive one) now have managed, through provocation, to get the "West" involved in the conflict. (So far this involvement is only diplomatic and verbal.) Moreover, the analysis so common in the Western media of a divided Ukraine (East vs West) has played into Russia's hands, setting up a scenario for strife and divisiveness.
::*'Brandist': I think it unlikely at present. Russia humiliated the US when it entered Georgia to stop it becoming part of NATO, exposing the limits of US power in areas where Russia has an overwhelming superiority in conventional weapons. Russia clearly cannot contest the US on a global basis in the way that the USSR once could, but it remains a great power with a powerful regional presence, while the limits of US power have been graphically illustrated in the Caucasus. This is another illustration of that.
::*'Blank': It is too soon to know what we are going to see but a proxy war is one possibility as is a direct confrontation between NATO and Russia (note I did not say war). In my personal opinion resolute NATO action combined with economic and political action of a similarly robust nature would force Russia to back down because it knows it cannot afford to go up against NATO. Indeed this operation was undertaken because Putin et al openly and ... publicly declared their belief that Obama and other Western leaders are weak, irresolute, and afraid to act. This calculation must be reversed decisively if peace is to hold.
::*'Kotsonis': I doubt it. The US has used stern language but so far has taken direct intervention off the table. On the other hand Russia has declared publicly that it can intervene militarily and has decided that the US will not. "Proxy" does not capture it because Russia is actually in Ukraine and the US won't be.
File photo of interviewee Jane Burbank.
In response to Russia's build-up of its forces in Crimea, Ukraine has ordered a full military mobilisation. To what extent can Ukrainian troops hold back and successfully fight Russian forces?
::*'Morris': Anything is possible, but I think Ukraine lacks the political will to enter large-scale conflict. There may be insurgency-like fighting.
::*'Brandist': Russia has overwhelming superiority in both the south and east of Ukraine, and the Ukrainian forces are not necessarily reliable in a conflict with Russia given the support for Russia among a substantial part of the Ukrainian population. Ukraine does, however, have substantial assets elsewhere and if Russia was to try to move into the Ukrainian heartland it would be a substantial operation. This is precisely why it is unlikely to do it. Moreover, Russia does not want a division of Ukraine, which could lead NATO to become established within the borders of the ex-USSR, so it is more likely it is seeking to change the facts on the ground so to be able to negotiate from a position of strength. It is difficult to predict how events will unfold on the ground, however, given the informal and extreme nationalist forces who are operating.
::*'Blank': It is unlikely that Ukraine could prevail in such a conflict but I think it would unhinge Russian calculations, create the basis for protracted conflict, including guerrilla war for which Russia is not prepared, and thus force the West to act and begin the process of imposing costs on Russia that Putin did not foresee. Indeed that is one reason why this is an incredibly reckless action on Putin's part.
::*'Kotsonis': No one thinks Ukraine can stand up to Russia. It's partly because Russia is bigger and better equipped, partly because Russia has bases in Ukraine, and partly because Russia is relatively united. One will have to see whether Ukraine will unite when so many of its citizens identify with Russia. We do not know the answer to this, only anecdote.
File photo of interviewee Jeremy Morris.
Would penalties imposed on Russia by the 'Western nations' being the United States, UK and France have severe consequences for the Russian economy?
::*'Morris': Not really, so much depends on oil price for Russia, but fall in the rouble due to lack of confidence may affect ordinary Russians' ability to buy imported goods.
::*'Brandist': Clearly such measures would have negative effects, and the business community in Russia is clearly worried. That said, however, the likelihood of any coherent action against Russia is not great, not least because much of Europe is reliant of Russian gas. Moreover, it is European states that would face any potential flood of refugees and so European states will not be keen on too much pressure that could lead Russia to press Ukraine even more. effectively vetoed Georgia's attempt to be part of NATO, and it would have even more interests in trying to stabilize the situation now. In this situation the 'Western nations' mentioned have limited leverage, though it clearly would have an impact.
::*'Blank': Ejecting Russia from the World Trade Organization to arraign Russia for violating its statutes, legislation placing sanctions on Russia equivalent to those on bank run|run on the rouble, and if necessary blockading the Baltic and Black Seas to prevent maritime commerce. Most importantly but this is over time, Europe must reorient its gas and oil purchases away from Russia on a long-term basis. All these moves must be taken together and in tandem with military-political moves to uphold Ukraine's integrity and sovereignty and thus preserve peace by deterring Russia and imposing excessive costs upon it.
::*'Kotsonis': It will probably make matters worse for Russia but it won't be a causal factor. Russia is overly dependent on commodities exports and is at the mercy of world prices. The world wants those resources and will probably not renounce them, but they may not be enough to keep the economy growing in Russia. Any penalties would only accelerate the secular trend.
Soldiers without insignia guard buildings in the Crimean capital, Simferopol, March 2, 2014.
There are reports that Russia could be ejected from the G8 group of developed economies. Would this be a major blow for Putin's domestic popularity?
::*'Morris': Not really.
::*'Brandist': In present circumstances not. There is a substantial constituency in Russia that is nostalgic about its imperial status, especially after the humiliation inflicted on the state during the Yeltsin period, and these conflicts are presented in this context. Certainly recognition of Russia at the G8 was a prestige factor, but there are clearly compensations on an ideological level in the present situation. This is an illustration of Russia's ascendency vis-a-vis the US and the European Union in one sense. What it all means in the longer term depends on a significant amount of variables, however.
::*'Blank': Ejecting Russia from the G8 is necessary but insignificant in its own right.
::*'Kotsonis': No, it would probably increase his popularity in an us-v-them dynamic. Putin thrives politically on and it may be treated as an attack on Russian prestige. But less on Putin's reputation at home.
File photo of interviewee Stephen Blank.
Is the Russian general public in full support of the deployment of their own troops into Ukraine, a separate sovereign nation?
::*'Morris': No, this is a distraction by Putin from increasing economic and political problems in Russia. A minority of Russians support deployment and I think support from ordinary Russians will fall when they realise deployment may result in the killing of fellow .
::*'Burbank': There is no such thing as a united Russian public. There are many views in Russia, as elsewhere. Clearly, some people in Russia oppose this assault on Ukraine, as we have seen from the arrests and beating of demonstrators in . There is a section of the academic "community" — also a deceptive word — that is opposed to the invasion.
:::If you are interested in this, read the discussion on Ab Imperio's Facebook site, where many young academics are expressing their views.
:::I would like to repeat one point: the notion of a simple nationalized divide between East and West Ukraine is both false and counter-productive. There are nationalists in many areas of the country, but there are also people with other political commitments. It is dangerous for the Western media to reinforce the notion that nationalist sentiment (pro-Russian or pro-Ukrainian) is the only political force in Ukraine. A whole generation has grown up since Ukraine's independence and many people, old and young and in the middle, have ideas about sovereignty and politics that are not simply "ethnic."
::*'Brandist': Russia does not have a unified or stable 'public opinion' any more than anywhere else. Moreover, the Crimea and east of Ukraine are not necessarily viewed as fully a separate nation among many Russians. Many Russians have relatives there and go there for vacations. At present the majority are in support for the reasons I've just outlined. However, we have seen significant opposition movements in recent years, which shows that if things turn out badly then Putin may be vulnerable. There is clearly an assessment of risks that has been carried out by the Kremlin, and so far it has paid off. Indeed, it probably strengthens Putin's compromised standing at home, but if things do go wrong then this could change quickly.
::*'Blank': It is probably the case that Putin enjoys public support in Russia but that is irrelevant since the media's been so thoroughly cowed as to be unreflective of reality and the issue is not public opinion there but Putin and the ruling clique.
::*'Kotsonis': Yes, this seems to be the case. You need to understand that Ukraine is in Russian minds somewhere between a close friend and a back yard. It was always assumed that this was the key alliance for Russia and tacitly understood that Russia's geopolitical interests would be respected. Europe's gamble last year was to pull Ukraine into the Euro orbit by forcing Ukraine to choose. Almost anyone in Russia saw this as a direct challenge. I can't say for certain but I imagine a large majority think the intervention is justified. Article 2: On Wednesday night more than 1,000 protesters, most of them part of the LGBT community, staged a dance protest they called the "Queer Rager" outside the Leows Hotel in Philadelphia's Center City, where the U.S. Republican Party has arranged a retreat. Gay rights and health care featured amongst the issues raised.
Protesters expressed concerns about traditional gay issues, but Republican U.S. President Donald Trump's impending repeal of the , law enforcement, climate change and other issues were also visible. Signs included "Health Care Is a Human Right," "BROWN BLACK LGBTQ LIVES MATTER," and "Trans Bodies Are Beautiful."
Titled "Queer Rage(r): Guerrilla Dance Party," participants were invited to dance and carry signs. Like the Women's March last Saturday, this protest was organized partially through Facebook.
Event organizer Hanako Franz told ABC Channel 6, "The focus for tonight is to call attention to the ways in which queer and trans, especially queer and trans black and brown people, do not have access to a lot of healthcare."
"Get ready to WERK it out," reads the event's official Facebook page. "As they try to take away our health care, to police Black, Brown, Trans and Queer bodies, to regulate our bodies, we’re here to say #WeAreQueer #WeAreHere #WeWillDance."
This is part of several events, including a rally by health care professionals, expected to continue until today, when the retreat ends. One event, which has been given the go-ahead by the city of Philadelphia, is expected to draw 3,000 participants.
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Article 1: This computer generated image shows the unresponsive aircraft being shadowed by Greek fighter jets.
A two-year trial concluded yesterday in Cyprus with the court in Nicosia clearing former senior staff of of manslaughter. They, alongside the defunct airline, had been accused of responsibility for killing 119 in a crash near Athens.
All 121 on board Flight 522 were killed but the prosecution did not charge manslaughter in relation to the two flight crew, deeming them partially responsible for their own deaths. The accident remains the worst air disaster to befall both Greece and Cyprus. Most victims were Cypriot tourists.
The Cypriot jet left Larnaca on August 14, 2005. It was headed for Prague in the Czech Republic. Contact was quickly lost with the aircraft, which flew itself as far as the Greek capital on autopilot.
The Hypoxia (medical)|oxygen starvation had knocked out German Captain Hans-Jurgen Merten and Cypriot co-pilot Pambos Charalambous. They never checked the system before takeoff, which had undergone testing prior to flight.
An alarm had sounded both on the ground and in the air but had been ignored by those flying, as the same alarm was used for a different problem and the pilots therefore misinterpreted the alarm. This design would later be cited by victims' relatives in a civil case against Boeing.
As the unresponsive jet entered Greek airspace two fighter jets intercepted. The air force reported back that the civilian craft's pilots were slumped over the controls. Passengers were similarly incapacitated. The plane reached — an intermediate stop in Athens was planned — by itself and then began circling the area awaiting human input.
That input eventually came in the form of a trainee pilot working on-board as a flight attendant. Investigators believe Andreas Prodromou had used multiple crew oxygen cylinders to be the last conscious person on board. The fighter pilots were able to watch him enter the cockpit.
Map of the flight path.
F-16 pilot Panayiotis Athanasopoulos was the last person to see Prodromou alive. He previously told the trial of initially receiving no response when signalling the jet in an attempt to get the pilots to follow him, then discovering the flight crew unconscious. The captain was out of sight. He testified he also signalled people wearing oxygen masks in the passenger cabin with similar lack of response. Prodromou, 25, entered the cockpit as the jet began losing altitude.
After trying but failing to resuscitate Merten, the fighter pilots saw the trainee pilot take over the controls himself in a bid to save the plane. He was out of time. By then the aircraft had been in the air for two hours, and it ran out of fuel before it could reach the runway. Although many were deeply comatose from lack of oxygen, everyone on board was still alive when the plane crashed into a mountain at , north of Athens.
Athanasopoulos says he gesticulated to Proprodomou and signalled him to land upon getting his attention. The trainee pilot simply pointed downwards, after which he "looked ahead and did not look towards me again as the plane went down". The airliner struck the ground levelly on its underside after straightening out moments before impact. It was torn apart.
The following year saw an air accident report primarily citing human error, and an inquiry by ex-Judge Panayiotis Kallis. The Kallis report was never made public. Helios, which was renamed Ajet Airways, closed down in 2006. Helios and Boeing were sued by victims' relatives; they sought €76 million but reached a settlement for an undisclosed sum. The accident report had also blamed Boeing for an "ineffectiveness of measures" over the dual-purpose alarm system.
The five defendants were charged in 2008. The defunct airline and four senior staff members each faced 119 counts of manslaughter, and alternative counts of causing death by a reckless, thoughtless or dangerous act. This gave a total of 1,190 charges. Manslaughter carries a potential life sentence with up to four years available on the lesser charge. "The charges concern two of the three most serious offences under the Cyprus penal code," deputy attorney general Akis Papasavvas said at the time.
The prosecution case was that the pilots were unfit to fly and the defendants were negligent in letting them at the controls. The state prosecutor therefore needed to prove the actions of Merten and Charalambous caused the disaster, as well as that those in the dock were responsible for their employment and aware — or ought to have been aware — of inadequacies in their competence.
The prosecution had noted the accused failed to seek references from , Merten's last employer. He lost that job owing to failings in his duties and was later the subject of Helios co-pilots' complaints. Charalambous was considered unlikely to achieve promotion to pilot and his ability to handle stress was questioned at trial.
A file photo of the aircraft from less than a year before it crashed.
In reaching a majority decision, two of the three judges noted Helios chief executive Andreas Drakos and managing director Demetris Pantazis would be acquitted even if the prosecution proved its case as they were not responsible for employing the pair. This fell to co-accused operations manager George Kikkides and chief pilot Ianko Stoimenov.
In any event, the verdict described "a dead-end for any procedure of identifying the competence of Merten" with only Jet2 among his previous employers being known to have a negative view of him. Subsequent official evaluations rated both him and Charalambous suitably competent to fly.
"The lack of any causal association between the defendants and the negligence they were charged with for the fatal accident completely disconnects the defendants with the accident," said the 170-page verdict. "Regardless... of how the charges are viewed, they remain groundless and without supporting evidence. It's judged that this reason is sufficient to dismiss all charges and acquit all defendants."
Assize Court President Charis Solomonides read the decision: "we conclude, without reservation, that no case has been proven prima-facie against all the defendants in all the charges they face and therefore, all the defendants are acquitted and charges are dropped." Solomonides made repeated mention of an inability for the prosecution to link the pilots' actions to those on trial, and noted that therefore no assessment had been made of their performance that day.
Judge Nicolas Santis dissented. Nonetheless, he too had criticisms of the prosecution. He said they failed to properly define 'competence' and called very few experts to testify. Victims' relatives shouted in the courtroom after he finished reading his opinion; cries included "killers!" and "is this justice?".
Victims' relatives had in fact predicted the acquittal and blamed the state for what they characterised as a poorly presented case. Relatives’ Committee president Nicolas Yiasoumis said "It was common knowledge that proceedings were weak due to the phrasing of the charges." There were also renewed calls for publication of the Kallis report. Yiasoumis claimed the Kallis report reached different conclusions to those used at trial, and said "We did not believe they could be convicted on the basis of the argument that they had not employed the appropriate staff."
Attorney General Petros Clerides initially said an appeal will be decided upon once the decision has been read, and that the Law Office was presently studying it. Yiasoumis said relatives may take Cyprus to a European court over the case once Cypriot legal matters are concluded. Clerides has now confirmed an appeal will be filed, which the prosecution has two weeks to do. He defended the performance of those who prosecuted "this titanic case". The appeal would be to the Supreme Court. Article 2: left
London, England — Following the second full day of competition at the 2012 Summer Paralympics, China leads the medal race with 13 gold medals and 34 medals in total. Ukraine is third with 6 gold medals.
China's large medal haul was distributed across several sports, with 15 from swimming, 5 each from athletics and track cycling, 4 from judo, 3 from powerlifting, 2 from shooting.
Australia's first medal of the Games was won in women's standing air rifle shooting event where Kath Proudfoot originally was listed as finishing fifth, but the Australians appealed this citing errors in how her results were calculated. Their appeal was successful, and Proudfoot came away with her second consecutive Paralympic medal in the event.
Over half the medals won by the came in swimming, with 7 total. The country has earned an additional 3 in track cycling and 1 in athletics.
A number of competitors have already earned multiple medals, including Australia's Matthew Cowdrey, and the United States's Jessica Long and Elizabeth Stone who all picked up a pair of medals in the pool.
Rank
Country
MenGold
MenSilver
MenBronze
MenTotal
WomenGold
WomenSilver
WomenBronze
WomenTotal
TotalGold
TotalSilver
TotalBronze
TotalTotal
Rank by total
1
8
7
5
20
5
3
6
14
13
10
11
34
1
2
2
2
3
7
5
2
5
12
7
4
8
19
3
3
4
2
2
8
2
3
3
8
6
5
5
16
4
4
3
2
2
7
2
1
1
4
5
3
3
11
5
5
Great Britain
2
6
4
12
2
5
1
8
4
11
5
20
2
6
2
2
4
2
1
4
7
4
1
6
11
5
7
1
2
4
7
2
2
4
3
4
4
11
5
8
1
1
2
1
2
1
4
2
3
1
6
9
9
2
1
3
1
2
3
2
2
2
6
9
10
1
2
3
1
1
2
2
4
12
11
1
1
1
1
2
2
21
12
1
2
1
4
2
4
6
1
4
5
10
8
13
1
2
2
5
1
2
2
5
11
14
1
1
1
1
1
3
1
2
1
4
12
15
1
1
1
3
1
1
1
1
2
4
12
15
1
1
1
2
3
1
1
2
4
12
17
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
3
16
18
1
2
3
1
2
3
16
19
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
21
19
1
1
2
1
1
2
21
19
1
1
2
1
1
2
21
19
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
21
23
1
1
1
1
29
23
1
1
1
1
29
23
1
1
1
1
29
23
1
1
1
1
29
23
1
1
1
1
29
23
1
1
1
1
29
23
1
1
1
1
29
30
2
1
3
2
1
3
16
30
2
1
3
2
1
3
16
32
1
1
2
1
1
2
21
32
1
1
2
1
1
2
21
34
1
1
1
1
29
34
1
1
1
1
29
34
1
1
1
1
29
34
1
1
1
1
29
34
1
1
1
1
29
34
1
1
1
1
29
40
3
3
3
3
16
41
2
2
2
2
21
42
1
1
1
1
29
42
1
1
1
1
29
42
1
1
1
1
29
Total
37
37
41
115
31
31
35
97
68
68
76
212 | 1 |
Article 1: A Korean War.
The US and North Korea have come to an agreement to recommence the search for remains of US servicemen, after six years, that had been unaccounted for after the . The search will continue next year around 100km away from Pyongyang.
They had started work on the recovery of war remains in 1996 but it was brought to an end by Donald Rumsfeld under the North Korea and weapons of mass destruction|ambitions for nuclear weapons.
The US has been adamant that this is a "humanitarian matter" so thus their relations should not affect it. This comes as part of an effort to improve relations. They have also agreed to "ensure the effectiveness and safety" for the teams going into the country. Article 2: Diaz in 2016
On Monday, Filipina weightlifter Tokyo Olympics in women's weightlifting in the 55 kg category during her fourth Olympic games. She lifted a combined weight 224 kg (494 lb), tying the previous new Olympic record. In the | 0 |
Article 1: Former Chelsea and England's football captain Aston Villa on a free transfer, the club announced on Monday. In April, the 36-year-old defender announced his desire to leave his boyhood club, Chelsea, after his contract ended with the London-based club.
John Terry joined the Blues 22 years ago, and made his professional debut against Aston Villa in 1998. Since then, Terry has won fifteen trophies making 717 appearances for Chelsea. The only players who made more appearances for Chelsea were Ron Harris and Premier League and EFL Cup|EFL (English Football League) Cup thrice, and one each of UEFA Champions League and . Terry led Chelsea to the Premier League title in his final season.
Terry said he did not want to play against Chelsea, and hence joined Aston Villa, who are in the , the second tier of English football. He said, "The mental side of playing against Chelsea was too much to get over for me. I was there for 22 years at the football club. I am very proud of that but this is a new chapter in my life and career."
After signing the contract, Terry said, "My thoughts are 100% here and the ambition is to get us back to the Premier League. It's a huge club." Terry has been assigned jersey number 26, the number he wore on his back in his entire professional career. His contract with Chelsea expired on Friday.
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* Article 2: On Wednesday, three-time Wimbledon winner Novak Djokovic withdrew from this year's tournament suffering from an elbow injury. The announcement was made after the Serbian took a medical timeout during the second set in the quarter-final against Czech tennis player .
File photo of Novak Djokovic
Djokovic said, "It's unfortunate that I had to finish Wimbledon, a grand slam, this way ... I mean, if someone feels bad about it, it's me. But, you know, I tried." His elbow was problematic for more than a year, he said. He also said, "I was able for 30 minutes to play with pain that was bearable. The serve and forehand were the shots where I could feel it the most and after that there was really no sense".
Djokovic's pre-quarterfinal against was rescheduled to Tuesday, so the 30-year-old Serbian had to play two matches in two days. Djokovic was two sets down with the scoreboard 7–6 2–0 when world number-two Djokovic decided to stop despite leading their head-to-head record, 25–2.
31-year-old Berdych therefore advanced to play the semi-final against Swiss seven-time Wimbledon Singles Champion Roger Federer. Berdych's best record at the Wimbledon was finalist in 2010, against Rafa Nadal — when he defeated Federer in quarterfinal. The Czech has never won a Grand Slam title.
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Article 1: Creigh Deeds.jpg|Creigh Deeds
McAuliffe Herndon.jpg|Terry McAuliffe
Brian Moran Rally.jpg|Brian Moran
Creigh Deeds has defeated Terry McAuliffe and Brian Moran to win the 2009 Democratic Party gubernatorial primary election in Virginia, United States, according to unofficial results from the state's board of elections.
Deeds won by a nearly two-to-one margin against his opponents, 50% for Deeds versus 26% for McAuliffe and 24% for Moran, on a low turnout with just six and a half per cent of registered voters taking part.
Jody Wagner easily won the Democratic primary to be candidate for Lieutenant Governor of Virginia.
Flag of the Commonwealth of VirginiaCreigh Deeds was the first to enter the governors' race, in early January 2008. A sitting senator in the Virginia legislature, Deeds' campaign was hampered by restrictions on his ability to fundraise and the amount of time he spent on the Senate floor. A veteran of state politics who ran as a centrist in Virginia, whose northern counties are increasingly dominated by Democratic voters but whose western and southern areas still tend to support Republicans, Deeds benefited from several high-profile endorsements including that of the Washington Post. What may have clinched Deeds' victory, though, was a strategy of saturating online media sources with campaign advertisements, finished with a "google blast" of particularly intense advertising on Election Day itself.
Terry McAuliffe, an early favorite to win the race, was formerly the chair of the Democratic National committee and later chair of Hillary Clinton's 2008 presidential bid, and entered the Virginia race just days after Election Day 2008. A New Yorker by birth with much experience in the Democratic party, McAuliffe's best skill was seen as his ability to raise funds in what analysts say will be an early test of whether Democrats, who won control of the White House and solidified control of both houses of Congress in 2008, can consolidate their gains in light of a contracting economy and an ongoing financial crisis.
Brian Moran, a former public prosecutor and former member of the Virginia State House, entered the race shortly after Deeds. His brother, Jim Moran, currently represents the part of Virginia closest to Washington, DC in the United States House of Representatives.
Polling before the vote showed Deeds pulling ahead from a statistical tie in May, but the likelihood of low turnout made the race hard to predict.
Virginia Attorney General Bob McDonnell ran unopposed for the Republican gubernatorial nomination. McDonnell, who defeated Deeds by a fraction of a percent in the 2005 Virginia Attorney General race, currently holds a strong advantage over him in the fall general election, according to a recent poll conducted by the political blog DailyKos.
Voters will elect a new governor to replace outgoing governor and rising Democratic star Tim Kaine on November 3. Article 2: Victor Kline, leader of the New Liberals.
On June 3, the New Liberals were officially registered as a political party by the Australian Electoral Commission, enabling them to run candidates for federal elections in the country.
While the party has been in existence for over a year, with member Karen Porter having run in the as an independent candidate, the party applied for registration on December 16.
The party has already faced legal barriers for registration. It shares the "liberal" with Australia's governing Liberal Party, who called the New Liberals a "cynical attempt to piggyback" on their own name, even presenting a survey from Crosby Textor of over 2000 voters that claimed over two-thirds of voters could percieve a connection between the parties, in an attempt to prevent the party's registration. Ultimately, the decided that, on balance, the name of the New Liberals was "sufficiently visually and aurally distinct" from the Liberal Party's name, and registered the party.
Wikinews spoke with the New Liberals' party leader Victor Kline via email about the plans of the New Liberals and their policies and values.
'Why is it that your party decided to call yourselves the New Liberals, given there's already a Liberal Party?'
The current Liberal Party of Australia has abandoned all liberal principles and is actually an ultra-conservative party. Indeed we are suing them through the for misrepresentation and fraud by continuing to use the word 'liberal' in their name, and if we are successful, they will be deregistered as a political party. We are a real liberal party as that is understood around the world and has been for two hundred years, to mean a party which believes in equality of opportunity, compassion and justice, plus freedom of the individual but with a strong place for government to ensure that in exercising that freedom, the individual doesn't impinge on the freedom of others.
'Lately, the issue of a Tamil family in immigration detention has been a topic of debate. The Murugappan family has been held in immigration detention for 2018 after their request for protection was rejected, after 5 years of living in the Queensland town of Biloela. They've now been reunited in Perth, where four year old Tharnicaa is being treated after a serious blood infection. What are your thoughts on this case, and on immigration law more broadly?'
Christmas Island Immigration Detention Centre and the Lilac compound (5775019842).jpg|thumb|Until recently, the Murugappan family were held in offshore detention on Christmas Island.
We believe that the treatment of refugees and asylum seekers over the last 30 years has been nothing short of a national shame, which will be looked back on with the same sort of horror people have when they look back on slavery. We intend to totally reform the system including, first and foremost, the abolition of mandatory detention of asylum seekers.
'Why did you decide to join the New Liberals?'
I was actually one of the four founders of the New Liberals. The party was founded because we felt that the major parties had both moved so far to the right that there was no-one to represent the majority of the people, and that our civil liberties were under such threat that our democracy was at risk of imploding into an authoritarian regime.
'According to your website, your party has so far chosen 17 candidates for the next federal election. How did you come to select them?'
We actually have quite a few more candidates but who are yet to go on the website. We were looking for people who were smart, and with a strong moral compass, and who have real world experience unlike 80% of the current political class who have not worked outside of politics or the unions.
COVID-19 prevention public health announcement from Commonwealth Government on Collins Street, Melbourne (49983117027).jpg|thumb|A public health announcement from the federal government in Melbourne.
'What do you think about how the federal government has handled the COVID-19 pandemic?'
If it had been up to the federal government, we would have run an open borders, open business policy akin to what was done in the USA with consequent massive loss of life. We were saved from this by the fortitude of the State governments.
'Could you give me a political issue that you think isn't getting enough attention? What would the New Liberals do about this issue?'
There is massive corruption at the federal level, and the media does not focus nearly enough on that. We will create an ICAC Independent Commission Against Corruption with teeth, meaning a body which will have the power to investigate and charge, politicians, judges and bureaucrats who have been corrupt, in dereliction of their duty or who have abused their power. And there will be a separate court which will have the power to try and convict such people and sentence them to terms of imprisonment.
'What's a key way in which the New Liberals differentiate themselves from other parties?'
We are unlike every other party in almost every way, but the key would be our economic policy which enables us to invest in the nation via putting people back to work. This will be done through our living wage – a job which suits their skills and interests, and if there is no such job available they will be trained for appropriate work and paid a full wage whilst training.
'One of the 10 values in your charter of core values is "to promote Australia's environmental health by acknowledging that care for the environment and good business practice are complementary, not mutually exclusive". Could you elaborate on what this would involve?'
So for example a government can invest in renewable energies, which is both good business practice and helpful for the environment.
'How would you describe your style of leadership?'
I have one main desire, to tell the truth at all times no matter what the consequences, and to answer the questions I am asked. I believe that inspires or should inspire confidence in a leader. I also want to always have the courage to call out the wrongs in the world, and to not be afraid to name those who are responsible and say why. The flip side of that is that I hope always to have the courage to admit when I have been mistaken. | 0 |
Article 1: On Friday, the US digital elevation model (DEM) of Mercury.
The DEM was created using data gathered by NASA's MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging (MESSENGER) spacecraft, including over 100,000 photographs, and shows a variety of Mercury's including the planet's highest and lowest points. MESSENGER principal investigator said they hope the information will be used to investigate Mercury's geological history.
MESSENGER image of Mercury from file, 2008.
The highest elevation on Mercury is at 4.48 kilometres (2.78 miles) above Mercury’s average elevation, located just south of the in some of Mercury’s oldest terrain. The lowest elevation, at 5.38 kilometers (3.34 miles) below Mercury’s average, is found on the floor of the Rachmaninoff basin, a double-ring impact basin suspected to host some of the most recent volcanic deposits on the planet.
The MESSENGER spacecraft was launched in 2004 to study Mercury, including its geology, and . MESSENGER began orbiting Mercury in March 2011, becoming the first spacecraft to do so. In April 2015, having completed its mission, MESSENGER dropped out of orbit and impacted the surface of Mercury.
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* Article 2: On Monday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson joined the calls by United Kingdom officials asking the United States to waive diplomatic immunity for Anne Sacoolas. Sacoolas, who has immunity as a diplomat's wife, was involved in a traffic collision which killed motorcyclist Harry Dunn on August 27. She subsequently left the UK and returned to the US.
Prime Minister Johnson was questioned about the case while speaking to the press at a hospital in . He said, "I think everybody's sympathies are very much with the family of Harry Dunn and our condolences to them for their tragic loss. I must answer you directly, I do not think that it can be right to use the process of diplomatic immunity for this type of purpose."
Johnson continued, "And I hope that Anne Sacoolas will come back and will engage properly with the processes of law as they are carried out in this country. That's a point that we've raised or are raising today with the American ambassador here in the UK and I hope it will be resolved very shortly. And to anticipate a question you might want to raise, if we can't resolve it then of course I will be raising it myself personally with the White House." The White House refers to the United States president's office.
Harry Dunn, a 19-year-old motorcyclist was struck by a traffic camera footage. The crash happened around 8:30 p.m. BST (1930 UTC) on August 27. He died from his injuries at RAF Croughton which is a intelligence base used by both the Royal Air Force and the US Air Force.
Northamptonshire police were able to determine the Volvo had come from RAF Croughton and spoke with Anne Sacoolas as a suspect. She informed police she had diplomatic immunity, but "that she had no plans to leave the country in the near future". Normally, only embassy workers — and their spouses — in London have diplomatic immunity, but in a 1994 agreement it was extended to all US workers at RAF Croughton.
Despite the assurances, she and her husband Jonathan Socoolas left the country, police revealed on Saturday. Northamptonshire's chief constable Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner|Police and Crime Commissioner United States Department of State.
Foreign Secretary urged the embassy to reconsider and spoke with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo about the case. The State Department gave its "deepest sympathies" and said immunity cases were afforded "intense attention at senior levels and are considered carefully given the global impact such decisions carry".
Dunn's mother, Charlotte Charles, said on TV, "She didn't purposely drive on the other side of the road... if she'd have stayed and faced us as a family we could have found that forgiveness... but forgiving her for leaving, I'm nowhere near." Charles told the Daily Mail, "All we need to do is ask her to come back. It’s not much to ask. She’s left a family in complete ruin. We’re broken." | 0 |
Article 1: Opposition MPs are calling on General Rick Hillier, chief of the Defence Staff of the Canadian Forces, to allow Governor General Michaelle Jean visit Kandahar, Afghanistan.
The trip still has not yet been arranged due to security concerns.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper went to Afghanistan earlier this year, then followed Defence Minister Adrienne Clarkson visited the Canadian troops in Afghanistan twice. The security was less of an issue because the soldiers were in Kabul.
Earlier this year, Jean told Hillier that she wanted to visit the troops in Kandahar to witness some of the provincial reconstruction teams at work outside the Canadian base and meet with local citizens.
"If all of them can go at various times, I am certain the military can make arrangements for the commander-in-chief to go," said Liberal MP Opposition Critics|official Opposition defence critic. "She's the commander-in-chief.... We all know it's a ceremonial position, but it is important for the troops to see the Governor General, the ultimate authority in dismissing the government or not dismissing the government, is there to appreciate what they're doing and lend support."
New Democratic Party defence critic also supports the idea on Jean going to Afghanistan. "It's clear that other people have been able to get in and out. I would think arrangements could be made for the Governor General to get in and out as well. There are entertainers going in!"
She is anxious to visit the Canadian troops, according to her spokesman, Randy Mylyk.
Jean was shedueled to go to the country during the in early September, when Canadians waged a major offensive against insurgents.
Jean has been visiting military bases in cities such as Esquimalt, British Columbia; Edmonton, Alberta; and Halifax, Nova Scotia, and also meeting with families of Canada's fallen. Article 2: Yesterday, the draw for the Last 16 for the 2017–18 Nyon, UTC). The draw took place in two pots, one consisting of the respective group winners, and the second of the runners-up. Winners of the Last 16 play in the quarter-finals.
UEFA Champions League is the competitive league of Europe in which football clubs topping their respective leagues play for the trophy. 32 clubs across the continent played in eight groups, and the winner and runner-up of each group qualified for the Last 16 knockout round.
'Draw result'
Group runners-up
Group winners
Juventus (ITA)
(ENG)
(SUI)
Manchester City (ENG)
(POR)
Liverpool FC (ENG)
(ESP)
Manchester United (ENG)
Real Madrid (ESP)
Paris Saint-Germain (FRA)
Shakhtar Donetsk (UKR)
AS Roma (ITA)
Chelsea FC (ENG)
FC Barcelona (ESP)
Bayern Munich (GER)
Beşiktaş JK (TUR)
Defending champions Tottenham Hotspur, are to face Paris Saint-Germain. English capital football club Tottenham are to play last season's finalists and Italian giants Juventus. Juve has finished runners-up in two out of last three Champions League finals — against in 2014–15 and against Madrid last season.
Spanish English champions | 0 |
Article 1: 5.8 October 21 2010 Chile.jpg|thumb|left|Shakemap of the earthquake, by the United States Geological Survey.
A "sudden" and "terrifying" aftershock of the magnitude 8.8, February 27 earthquake hit central and southern Chile on Wednesday night. The aftershock, as reported by the Servicio Sismológico de la Universidad de Chile (University of Chile Seismological Service), had a magnitude of 5.8, and occurred at a depth of 32.6 kilometers (20.3 miles). It took place at 23:49:56 local time (Thursday 02:49:56 UTC). The (USGS) said it occurred at a depth of 7 km (4.4 miles).
Universidad de Chile measurements placed the center of the earthquake under the Pacific Ocean, 153 km (96 miles) northwest of the coastal town of Constitución.
Diego Grez, a Wikinews reporter in Pichilemu, said, "It occurred very suddenly, and I felt the earth was moving like in circles." The coastal city of Pichilemu is about 150 km (about 90 miles) from the center of Wednesday night's earthquake.
The USGS reported it occurred off the coast of the Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins Region coast, 206 km (128 miles) west-northwest of Concepción, Chile|Concepción; 263 km (164 miles) southwest of ; and 313 km (195 miles) west-southwest of Santiago, the capital of the country.
As reported by Valparaíso Region|Valparaíso (Mercalli III), Santiago Metropolitan (II, III, IV), O'Higgins (IV), Maule (III, IV, V), Bío Bío (II, III, IV) and La Araucanía regions (II, III), including cities such as Santiago, Viña del Mar, Lolol, Santa Cruz, Article 2: Al Jazeera journalists Canadian Peter Greste were sentenced yesterday to three years in prison by judge Hassan Farid following a retrial of the 2013 case in Cairo.
The three men were accused of and charged with aiding banned Egyptian organization the Muslim Brotherhood, broadcasting false information, and operating without a press license within Egypt. Fahmy and Mohamed were present at the courtroom in Cairo's trial in absentia|in absentia after an ordered re-trial.
Julie Bishop has commented on the court's decision, saying she would use all diplomatic means available with the Egyptian minister of foreign affairs to clear Grestse's name. Al Jazeera continue to deny the accusations.
"The situation is a challenge to journalism as a whole. If this stands unchallenged, this formula will be repeated elsewhere. Journalists should not be imprisoned for doing their jobs. Journalism is not a crime", stated Al Jazeera online. They indicated intent to appeal the verdict to the .
Peter Greste tweeted on the verdict: "Shocked. Outraged. Angry. Upset. None of them convey how I feel right now. 3 yr sentences for @bahrooz, @MFFahmy11 and me is so wrong."
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Article 1: President George W. Bush offers an official pardon to May, the 2007 Thanksgiving Turkey.
On Tuesday, the press and members of the National Turkey Federation gathered in large numbers at the White House's Rose Garden in the United States to witness an annual Thanksgiving tradition in the U.S., a presidential pardon of two Thanksgiving turkeys.
Every year, a U.S. President gives a pardon to two turkeys, saving them from being put on a dinner table somewhere in America. This year, President George W. Bush pardoned two turkeys named May and Flower, who were both chosen for the pardon by the citizens of the U.S.
"Each of you is taking part in a tradition that goes back to the days of Harry Truman. And to paraphrase Harry today, we have a message for our two feathered friends: You cannot take the heat -- and you're definitely going to stay out of the kitchen. I thank everybody who voted online to choose the names for our guests of honor. And I'm pleased to announce the winning names May and Flower. These names are certainly better than the names the vice president suggested, which was Lunch and Dinner," Bush said jokingly.
After receiving the pardons, the turkeys got a special ride in a three-car motorcade to Dulles Airport, which included an array of lights, sirens and police motorcycles. From there, both turkeys were flown to Orlando, Florida on a plane dubbed United Turkey One where they were the Grand Marshalls for today's Thanksgiving Day parade in Walt Disney World. Both turkeys received a welcome which included a red carpet, and free passes to the park.
"So now I have a task, and that is to grant a full presidential pardon to May and Flower. They'll be shortly flown to Disney World, where they will serve as Honorary Grand Marshals for the Thanksgiving Day Parade. I hope that honor doesn't go to their head. May they live the rest of their lives in blissful gobbling. And may all Americans enjoy a holiday full of love and peace. God bless you all," added Bush.
es:Dos pavos reciben "perdón" presidencial por el día de acción de gracias estadounidense
Perus recebem "perdão" presidencial pelo dia de Ação de Graças Article 2: A Burmese python up a tree in the Everglades.
Media reported Wednesday that biologists from the Conservancy of Southwest Florida reported having captured a 18 in length and 215 pounds (97 kg) in weight in the state's wetlands.
It may be the largest member of its species ever found outside its natural range in Southeast Asia. Another Burmese python measuring 18 feet and 9 inches (5.7 m) was found in 2020, but it only weighed 104 pounds (47.2 kilograms).
In a search documented by , the team captured the current snake in December 2021 by tagging a male "scout snake" named Dionysius with a GPS tracking device and releasing it into the western Everglades.
"How do you find the needle in the haystack? You could use a magnet, and in a similar way our male scout snakes are attracted to the biggest females around," said wildlife expert Ian Bartoszek, the team's project manager.
Pythons are an in Florida. Removing female snakes from the environment before they lay their eggs is the Conservancy's preferred strategy for limiting python breeding. When the team saw that Dionysius was spending several weeks in one area, they concluded he'd found a sexually mature female and set off to retrieve him.
It took twenty minutes of wrestling and three adult humans to carry the snake to a vehicle, in which it was taken to a laboratory in and euthanized. Upon necropsy, it was found to contain over 122 healthy but unfertilized egg follicles.
A captured Burmese python laid against Everglades ground cover.
Pythons were introduced to Florida in the 1970s, probably by being sold as pets. While there is a history of individual pet owners illegally releasing exotic animals into the wild after they grow larger than expected, the destruction caused by in 1992 also allowed animals from a serpent center to escape to the Everglades and other habitats, where they reproduced in great numbers.
Since then, they have disrupted the food chain by eating local animals, including endangered animals: the stomach of this snake contained the remains of a .
The state of Florida considers Burmese pythons a threat to native wildlife and sponsors an annual python hunt with USD2,500 as first prize. | 1 |
Article 1: Probably one of the first good things to come out of the 2004 Tsunami in Asia, ancient ruins were discovered in India. Fishermen along the shores report seeing the ruins along the shoreline near Mahabalipuram when the waters receded just prior to the arrival of the tsunami. Mahabalipuram is a port city of South India, dating back to the 7th century, around 60 km south from the city of Chennai in Tamil Nadu.
The fishermen reported a complex consisting of ancient temples. Some mention seeing at least 20 distinct temples, and hundreds of refrigerator-sized blocks. The walls were covered with barnacles, coral and mud. Local folklore tells of an ancient port in the area.
On the shore, three structures consisting of elaborate carvings in the shape of animals were uncovered. The structures appear to have been covered in sand, which had been wiped away by the force of the tsunami. The structures appear to belong to a port city built in the 7th century, said T. Satyamurthy, a senior archaeologist with the Archaeological Survey of India. The sculptures, representing an elephant, a lion and a flying horse, were commonly used during the Pallava dynasty, which ran from the 4th to the 9th century, archeologists say.
The temples along the shores of Mahabalipuram are already a famous feature of the city, and have been declared a UNESCO World Heritage site. Legend has it that the city was home to seven pagodas. Underwater excavations of the area by the archaeological society, run by the Indian government and navy divers, began on Thursday. Article 2: An F-16 fighter jet, taking offThe United States announced that it will be willing to sell F-16 fighter jets to Pakistan on Friday. U.S. State Department officials said that the sale would improve regional security.
A senior U.S. official, speaking to AFP on conditions of anonymity, reportedly said that the amount of planes which will be sold to Pakistan is "relatively small," although he said that" there is no set limit on what the United States is going to be willing to sell."
Pakistan reportedly wants 25 of the planes, which have a maximum range of over 2,000 miles and are capable of being used for ground or air attacks.
President Bush personally telephoned Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to inform him of the new developments before the announcement, according to White House officials.
According to a spokesman for Singh, the Indian prime minister expressed "great disappointment" and said that it could have "negative consequences" for the security of India.
The senior U.S. official also said that "we don't see any impact on the relevant military balances in the region." He added that the United States would be willing to sell both F-16 and more technologically advanced F-18 fighters to India, if India desired them.
New Delhi Television reports that the offer "has been welcomed" by India's Ministry of External Affairs. Xinhua has stated that India is seeking a new contract for a purchase of 126 fighter planes.
The announcement was also welcomed by the Pakistani government. "We welcome this good gesture and it shows good friendship between Pakistan and the United States," Pakistani Information Minister Sheikh Rashid said.
Xinhua reported that potential sales could benefit US aerospace giant Lockheed Martin, which hopes to fill "looming gaps in the production line."
The company "has not been officially notified by the U.S. government of any agreement", Lockheed spokesman Tom Jurkowsky told the Washington Post. The Bethesda-based company said that it would have to close its production line in Fort Worth, Texas if it does not receive additional orders by this fall.
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Article 1: Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan (RAWA) has been listed among the "60 Asian Heroes" along with Dalai Lama, Time (magazine)|Time Magazine. The magazine dedicated its November 13, 2006 special anniversary issue to pay "homage to the men and women who have shaped our destiny and our times."
Aryn Baker writes in her profile of Meena: "Although she was only 30 when she died, Meena had already planted the seeds of an Afghan women's rights movement based on the power of knowledge. She believed that if women were able to read and write, that if they could communicate and learn about the world, they would discover their own strength and could make a difference in their own society."
Meena established RAWA in 1977 to promotes women's rights and a secular democracy. The group opposed both the Soviet-supported regime and the later Taliban Queeta of Khadamat-e Etela'at-e Dawlati (KHAD), the secret police of the Soviet-supported regime in Afghanistan, which functioned under the control of the . Article 2: In statements to the press on Monday and Tuesday, Dr. Salem Salama, a member of the Palestine|Palestinian Legislative Council's economic committee, said signs of a natural gas deposit were found off the coast of the .
Dr. Salama said the gas field had been found by Palestinian fishermen in the Gaza Strip, who noticed bubbling in the water which they first assumed was from fish or plants moving underwater. He added, samples from the site had been taken by navy personnel to the Islamic University, where they were verified. In a statement to AFP he said "preliminary tests carried out by experts from the Islamic University suggest that there is a natural gas field near the coast".
In an interview to the Gazan radio station Sout Al-Aqsa, Salama said the gas deposit lies only 200 to 300 meters from the central coast of the Gaza Strip, which would "facilitate the work of any company that might invest in this field. The return will be great for the Gaza Strip, in economic terms".
Deputy Hamas Prime Minister Mr. Ziad Al-Zaza calmed down the excitement regarding the issue in a comment to AFP. "We need to conduct further studies to confirm that there is any gas", he said. "This requires probing by specialist companies because we don't have the adequate laboratories and experts here".
The Gaza Strip, which has been governed by Hamas since 2007, is now experiencing the most severe energy crisis in its history. Following the lack of fuels, the residents of the Gaza Strip sometimes need to manage with only 12 hours of electricity a day. This evidence of natural gas fields may offer a resolution to the crisis.
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Article 1: On Thursday, peace talks between the Syrian government and its opposition officially began in Geneva, Switzerland. The talks, organized by the United Nations, aim toward a political solution to the Syrian Civil War that has lasted for more than five years.
Staffan de Mistura in Astana.png|thumb|left|260px|From file, Staffan de Mistura at related talks last month in Astana, Kazakhstan.
The peace conference is being held at the foreign=suppress. After an opening ceremony which the opposition delegation nearly missed due to internal disagreements, the UN envoy to Syria formally announced the start of the first day of talks. The government and opposition delegations sat opposite each other with a UN assembly serving as a mediator.
The two sides, however, failed to directly talk to the other and no negotiations took place on the first day. Staffan de Mistura separately spoke to the opposing representatives. "I ask you to work together. I know it's not going to be easy to end this horrible conflict and lay the foundation for a country at peace with itself, sovereign and unified", he told the assembly.
The Syrian government delegation was led by , the Syrian representative to the UN. He attended several previous Syrian peace talks.
The opposition delegation mainly consisted of the Naser al-Hariri. "Today, the real opposition that represents the Syrian people is the HNC. This delegation and the HNC, extends its hand to any national partner that adopts the will of the Syrian people", he said. The HNC is based in Saudi Arabia. However, two other opposition groups also attended the conference, supported by Russia, which is also a major supporter of the Syrian government.
In addition to the two political delegations, a group of several Syrian women were also in Geneva. Some of them had relatives arrested, abducted, or otherwise missing during the war.
The talks are held on the basis of , adopted in December 2015, which called for a ceasefire and a political transition in Syria.
This conference takes place nearly a year after the previous round of Syrian peace talks in Geneva collapsed in 2016. "We do know what will happen if we fail once again — more deaths, more suffering, more terrorism, more refugees", said de Mistura.
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Politics and conflicts
Syria
United Nations
Middle East Article 2: Logo of the Returned and Services League of Australia.
Pete Rudland.
Wikinews reporter J.J. Liu emailed the Returned and Services League of Australia (RSL) for comment on the coming 102nd observance of Armistice of 11 November 1918|Armistice of November 11, 1918 that resulted, most notably, in the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front of World War I (WW1).
Initially "William Deane issued a proclamation in 1997 to urge all Australians to observe one minutes' silence.
The website states 61,630 Australians perished during the First World War between August 4, 1914 and March 31, 1921, making the conflict the deadliest in Australian history by far. The RSL website states that from the country's population of five million, 416,809 enlisted, 155 thousand were wounded and eight thousand died of post-war injuries.
Questions were fielded by RSL Ambassador Pete Rudland, who served with the from 1989 to 2017 and had deployments in Cambodia in 1993, Iraq in 1997 and again in 2003, East Timor in 2001 and Afghanistan in 2010, when he was injured in a fatal helicopter crash that killed four.
: I think, In sic the beginning Remembrance Day/Armistice had an effect on 2/3 of the world and everyone in our country had been impacted in some way. So many Australian men and women had died or been wounded. Just over 60,000 dead and a further 156,000 wounded out of a population of 4,985,569.
Let that sink in, over 60,000 Australians that would be buried in foreign lands.
Australia, other Commonwealth countries and allied countries would not be able to effectively mourn their losses.
For Australians, the Returned & Services League (RSL) provided an opportunity for the families of the fallen and wounded to mourn together and heal through shared experiences. Soldiers from all backgrounds stood together to remember and understand everyone’s experience of War.
Today’s wars do not exact the same toll, however for those that fight them and their families the RSL continues to provide the same opportunities as it did a hundred years ago.
Remembrance Day in its size of impacted people has changed but the narrative will never change.
'What is the role you believe organisations should take in Remembrance Day?'
: A modern Remembrance Day is really just a collection of stories. Stories of people that sacrifice everything for the values they believe in. Organisations should take the steps to ensure that the stories and the lessons of the past are learnt and preserved. With the changing demographic of our country and others, Ex-Service Organisations are the custodians of the memories of the past.
20060425 Australia NSW Sydney ANZACDayDawnService DebnamBeazleyNelsonStanding.jpg|thumb|Politicians Kim Beazley and Brendan Nelson attending an Anzac Day ceremony in Sydney on April 25, 2006.
'What is the role you believe governments should take in Remembrance Day?'
: The path to war is walked by politicians, the war is fought by soldiers and the price of war is paid by the families!
With that being said, Governments need to take the lead on Remembrance Day and . Soldiers don’t make decisions to go to war, governments do! sic and for that to continue soldiers must feel that their sacrifices are respected by the people that make the decision to deploy them. The act of recognising significant days like ANZAC Day and Remembrance Day reinforces the relationship between government, soldiers and the country.
'103 years after the 1918 Armistice, why is Remembrance Day important today? Has it retained its poignancy so long after the War?'
: For Australians WW1 marks the first time that Australians deployed to foreign shores as Australians. We had only deployed as colonies before then.
Federation had only just been granted and most Australians would have been very proud of what our very young nation had achieved domestically and militarily during this period.
Australia, as part of the Commonwealth, along with its allies defeated the in the largest war the world had ever seen.
I think that Australians learnt the enormous price of war and honoured it. Soldiers and their families’ sacrifices shaped the direction of our nation and I think that most people today understand the relationship between the past and present. That is why it has retained its poignancy for over one hundred years.
'What do the lessons of World War I and its aftermath teach us of veterans' affairs today?'
: That war is a complex environment and we must be prepared for every continuation. The business of war does not end at the completion of hostilities. The wounded require rehabilitation and ongoing support and the families of the fallen need to feel that their sacrifice was worth it. This is relevant to every conflict.
'Why should Remembrance Day be commemorated alongside 25 April - ANZAC Day?'
: ANZAC Day is the beginning of an Australian legend! Triumph over adversity - it is built into the fabric of our culture.
Remembrance Day reminds Australians of more than the heavy human price of WW1. It reminds us of the holistic burden of a new nation trying to find its place. A nation that despite this pulled together to support our King, our Country, our Government, our families and friends and our neighbours.
ANZAC Day and Remembrance Day together on the Australian calendar symbolises the path all Australians have walked. | 0 |
Article 1: Prime Minister contact tracing across Europe and multiple leaders voluntarily .
File photo of Prime Minister
European leaders self-isolating from the incident included the Prime Ministers of Belgium, Luxembourg, Spain, Portugal, and France itself, and European Council chief .
Without mentioning any symptoms, 47-year-old Matovič's government office has said he has cancelled all near upcoming events, and self-quarantine announcements quickly followed by government ministers who attended an official meeting with the Prime Minister two days earlier. During that meeting, it was agreed a partial lockdown would be instated on Saturday in response to increasing number of infections amongst the nation's 5.5 million people.
Council spokesperson Barend Leyts, when asked whether an investigation was conducted to see who else at the summit may have caught COVID-19, told Brussels-based media network safety procedure had been followed and only Macron and Matovič were known to have tested positive.
After Deputy Prime Minister for Finance and Minister of Economy failed to procure sufficient numbers of rapid testing kits, the Prime Minister apologised to the people of his country for "having an idiot as economy minister." Article 2: Українська Моравія.jpg|thumb|left|A tractor tilling a field in Vitalii Bashkatov
On Friday, the European Commission (EC) reached a deal with European Union (EU) member states Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia on imports of wheat, maize, , and sunflower seeds from Ukraine.
The agreement provided for 100 million euros to compensate farmers and allowed the five nations to prevent the Ukrainian products from entering their domestic markets. The five, in turn, agreed to allow free transit of the goods through their countries. Additionally, the EU extended June's one-year removal of duties on Ukrainian products for another year on Friday, pending approval by the European Parliament and members.
, the bloc's top trade official, announced the deal: "I'm glad to announce that we have reached a political agreement concerning Ukrainian agrifood imports in the EU. We've agreed with the five neighboring EU member states and Ukraine on how we'll tackle the situation."
EC President said the deal "preserves both Ukraine's exports capacity so it continues feeding the world, and our farmers' livelihoods."
Polish Prime Minister said: "We have just now finalized agreements with the European Union regarding the ban on the import of these agricultural products, which above all led to destabilization in the Polish market."
Cheaper products caused an excess of supply in these countries' domestic markets after the EU lifted those tariffs amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, stating it would enable the products to reach their target markets in the Middle East and Africa while Black Sea ports remained contested.
Logistical costs hindered re-exports of Ukrainian goods, driving down local prices and prompting farmer protests. On April 4, the EC adopted an "emergency support measure" providing over 56 million euros to Poland, Romania, and Bulgaria to help farmers but acknowledged this only partially covered losses.
This did not assuage the farmers, and Poland announced a ban on imports from Ukraine on April 15, followed by Hungary the same day, then Slovakia on April 17 and Bulgaria on April 19, with an exception for products en route to other nations through Bulgaria. Romania did not enact restrictions, but appealed to the EU for "preventative measures" on products from Ukraine.
"Bulgaria is in solidarity with Ukraine, but a local glut is being created on the agricultural market, because instead of export corridors our countries are becoming warehouses," Bulgaria's Minister of Agriculture, Yavor Gechev, said before his nation imposed its ban.
Citing its nature, members — and the EU itself — condemned the bans. Arianna Podestà of the EC declared to CNN: "It is important to underline that trade policy is of EU exclusive competence and, therefore, unilateral actions are not acceptable."
"The flow of Ukrainian agro-export is a matter of survival for the Ukrainian economy, heavily impacted by the full-scale Russian war of aggression," Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister said prior to the deal. "So, our common priority should be an extension of the suspension of import duties, quotas, and trade defense measures on Ukrainian exports to the European Union." | 1 |
Article 1: Bayern Munich and Eintracht Frankfurt drew 0-0 today after Bayern Munich failed to score on any of their 38 shots.
Bayern Munich kept taking shot after shot while Eintracht Frankfurt failed to record a shot in the 1st half. Bayern Munich continued in their dominance in possession, Corner kicks and shots.
Bayern Munich next game is on Thursday in an away game against Bolton Wanderers in UEFA Cup action.
'Ottmar Hitzfeld:' “There’ll come a home game once in a while where we don’t score. We were extremely profligate with our chances, we could have been in the lead after just a few seconds. We missed three or four good openings in the first half, but we were too imprecise today. It got more and more difficult as the match went on, because Frankfurt pulled nine men back and didn’t even go looking for a goal. We applied a lot of pressure, but today we were a little unlucky too, although I still thought we’d score if we remained patient. But Frankfurt did very well, and having Nikolov in goal hardly worked against them today.“
'Friedhelm Funkel (Frankfurt coach):' “Obviously I’m happy with a point, because normally we’re not in the same league as Bayern. As everyone knows, we were missing a few key players today. We were extremely good tactically and we deserved the point, although obviously it was all down to defending. You don’t have many options when you’re forced to pick players who haven’t featured for a long time. My players defended to the bets of their abilities today. All that mattered was coming away with a point. Nikolov had a tremendous match, and we rode our luck in certain situations.“
'Oka Nikolov (Frankfurt keeper):' “We defended with eleven men at times, but that’s hardly surprising given Bayern’s class. We got lucky too, but the only thing that counts is that we’ve earned a point.“ Article 2: Yesterday, World Bank released its 2012 World Development Report on Gender Equality and Development. India was mentioned over 300 times in the report, many more times than more developed countries like Spain which was mentioned 48 times, New Zealand which was mentioned 15 times, and Canada which was mentioned 22 times.
The report mentions the importance of gender equality for national development as it ties into improve productivity, improved outcomes for the next generation, and more representative decision making. Across the board for India, improved gender equality on the local level led to improvements in sanitation, water supplies, irrigation, and schools.
School girls in Mumbai.jpg|thumb|left|School girls from Mumbai
Nationally, the report found that a woman's income correlated positively with the number of years her children spent in school. There is no gender gap in male/female school attendance for the richest 20% of Indian families, but males outnumber females by a ratio of 5 to 1 for the poorest 20% of Indian families. Girls in the bottom 20% on average only finish Grade 1 while males finish Grade 6. By age 15, according to , Indian parents from Andhra Pradesh prioritize family outcomes for their male children over their female ones.
Indian women earn $0.64 for every $1 earned by their male counterparts. They fare better proportionally than their female German counterparts who earn $0.62 and Georgia who earn $0.60. In the developing world, they lag behind Malawi where women earn $0.90 for every $1 earned by men, Egypt where women earn $0.82, and Benin and Mexico at $0.80. A fifth of married Indian women, including those with their own income, do not make decisions on household spending. The 18% average puts Indian female control of their earnings equal to their counterparts in Mozambique. India is between Nigeria at 14%, and Zambia and Rwanda at 20%.
Female activists from McKay Savage
Indian women are having fewer children. The report found that while it took 100 years for the average woman in the United States to go from having six children to having three, it took India only 35 years. Women still have high maternal mortality rates, especially when compared to neighboring Sri Lanka. India's rate is six times as high. Very young females still die at very high rates in India, especially in obstetric ultrasonography|ultra-sound and similar technologies as a cause for the very high rates in both India and China because it allows parents to select the sex of their child.
In a national exception, the height of North Indian women increased more slowly and they had worse proportional to their male counterparts.
Estimates by the World Bank report writers based on suggest 15% of Indian women think it is acceptable for a husband to beat his wife if she refuses to have sex with him, 20% if she burns food and 30% if she argues with him.
Economic well being plays a role in the number of children a woman has. The richest 20% of women average around 1.5 total children. The poorest 20% average about 4 children. India's poorest 20% is comparable to Colombia and the Dominican Republic. The number is much lower than many Afrian countries including Niger, Mali, Zambia, Malawi, Liberia, Nigeria, Tanzania and Kenya where the poorest 20% average over 7 children.
The Indian gains highlighted include several local ones. This includes using women's self-help groups focused on taking best practices from research and applying them in farming in the state of Orissa. The Self Employed Women’s Association has assisted women in Gujarat by providing childcare. Quotas for women elected in local governments led to changes in underlying beliefs about the effectiveness of women in government. The creation of an all-women's police force in Tamil Nadu led to increased reporting of crimes against women and general comfort in going to the police to report a problem.
The report offers several pieces of advice for Indian policy makers, including trying to change current role models to include more women who do not follow social norms. It advises laws be created and enforced to prevent sex selection of children. The report also encourages strengthening ownership and land rights, which should also address the agricultural productivity gender-gap. | 0 |
Article 1: The first person to become infected with the Avian Flu or Bird Flu virus in China has been declared healthy after being infected one year ago.
Doctors say that He Junyao, 10-years-old, who was infected on October 18, 2005 is healthy and all his body functions are "normal."
"His body functions are all normal" and the illness "has not affected the boy's growth," said Doctor Jiang Yaohui of the Hunan Provincial Children's Hospital. Yaohui also stated that the quick and "proper treatment" the boy had received was the reason that he survived.
The boy has been granted free medical check-ups until his eighteenth birthday.
At least 19 people have become ill from the illness in China and at least 14 of those have died. Article 2: Portrait of Griffith taken January 12, 2020.
Economic Secretary to the Treasury|Economic Secretary to House of Commons Tuesday the government was considering a "digital pound", with public consultations on the attributes and regulation of | 0 |
Article 1: The Florida newspaper St. Petersburg Times published a series of investigative articles on Scientology on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, including exclusive interviews with former high-ranking executives within the organization. Four former Scientology executives stated that they witnessed the Church of Scientology's leader David Miscavige physically strike staff members numerous times.
Hollywood scientology building top.jpg|thumb|left|Scientology building on Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California
The former executives speaking out include Mike Rinder, who served as head of the organization's legal and public relations division the Office of Special Affairs, Mark Rathbun, former Inspector General of the organization's Religious Technology Center, Tom De Vocht, former manager of the organization's operations in Clearwater, Florida, and Amy Scobee, a former Scientology staff member in California who assisted in construction of Scientology's Celebrity Centres. Rathbun supervised the Church of Scientology's response to the Lisa McPherson case, after she died under Scientology care in 1995.
Rinder said the impact was more one of humiliation than physical pain: "The issue wasn't the physical pain of it (being assaulted by Miscavige). The issue was the humiliation and the domination. ... It's the fact that the domination you're getting — hit in the face, kicked — and you can't do anything about it." Rathbun asserted Miscavige would assault executives during conferences. "Regularly David Miscavige would in the middle of a conference physically assault, punch, slap or grab by the neck a number of executives," said Rathbun.
De Vocht said that Miscavige would "lose it" if he did not hear a satisfactory answer from his executives: "If it wasn't the answer he wanted to hear, he'd lose it. If it was contrary to how he thought, he'd lose it. If he found it to be smart aleck, or it was a better answer than he had, he would lose it." Scobee was critical of Miscavige's actions while calling himself a "religious leader". "You cannot call yourself a religious leader as you beat people, as you confine people, as you rip apart families. If I was trying to destroy Scientology, I would leave David Miscavige right where he is because he's doing a fantastic job of it," she said.
In its preparation for the investigation, The St. Petersburg Times staff met with attorneys and representatives for the Church of Scientology for 25 hours. According to the paper Miscavige was sought out by reporters for an interview from May 13, but they were informed he would not be available prior to July. Miscavige e-mailed the paper on Saturday, complaining that he was not interviewed. "I am at a loss to comprehend how the St. Petersburg Times can publish a story about me and the religion I lead without accepting the offer to speak with me," wrote Miscavige.
Church of Scientology representatives denied the statements made by their former executives, and claimed the individuals left the organization after being demoted. They claimed the former executives were motivated by feelings of revenge and only speaking to the press for financial gain.
Scientology spokesman Tommy Davis acknowledged violence occurred within the ranks of Scientology management, but claimed that it was Rathbun and not Miscavige who carried out the assaults. In comments to the Associated Press, Davis referred to the statements made by former executives about Miscavige as "absolutely, unquestionably false". Scientology representative Lyman Spurlock stated "What they want to do is extort money from the church. ... and right now the St. Pete Times is their extortion vehicle... you're just their lackeys. They're using you."
The St. Petersburg Times reported Monday on the attention received by the investigative articles in other media. The Associated Press carried the story, and it was included in over 177 television and news websites including MSNBC, the Los Angeles Times, The Guardian, and the Chicago Sun-Times, as well as blogs and media sites for The Huffington Post, Gawker, L.A. Weekly, and The Village Voice. By Monday the first article in the series had received over 3,600 "diggs" at the social news website Digg and generated over 420 comments at the site. A post at the "On Deadline" blog of USA Today called the investigation "a fascinating three-part series". "Juicy stuff from a mainstream newspaper coming out and hitting Scientology hard," said biologist and University of Minnesota, Morris associate professor PZ Myers in a post to his blog Pharyngula. "I'm sure there are meetings going on in Clearwater right now where they're plotting revenge," wrote Myers. Article 2: Brian T. Carroll.
Retired teacher American Solidarity Party, answered some questions about his campaign from Wikinews accredited reporter William S. Saturn.
Carroll is an Evangelical Christian. During a 44 year career in education, he mainly taught history to missionary parents were stationed there. Carroll joined the Solidarity Party and ran for Congress in 2018 for California's 22nd congressional seat. He finished the Joe Schriner. Carroll selected fellow teacher Amar Patel as his running mate. Patel spoke to Wikinews in August.
The Solidarity Party was founded in 2011 as the Christian Democratic Party. It is based on Roman Catholic social teachings, advocating for consistent life ethic" including opposition to abortion, euthanasia, and capital punishment. The party changed to its current name ahead of the 2016 presidential election, when its first ticket of Write-in candidate|write-ins elsewhere. It has grown ahead of the 2020 presidential election, securing ballot access for the Carroll–Patel ticket in a total of eight states, with write-in access in 23 others.
With Wikinews, Carroll discusses his background, COVID-19 and campaigning, presidential nominations, and his views on such issues as climate change, foreign policy, internet speech, and race relations in the United States.
: 'How have your past experiences prepared you for the job of President? '
::'Brian Carroll': A teacher explains things all day long, just like a politician. My other experiences include specific issues where my role was largely raising community awareness. That's a political role.
: 'How would you describe your style of leadership? How does it compare to the leadership styles of President Donald Trump and former President Barack Obama? '
::'Brian Carroll': I'm the unTrump. I'm secure enough in myself that I don’t feel threatened by experts. Like Jefferson, I have multiple interests and a softer personality, though I'm more comfortable speaking in public than was Jefferson. I will hire a very organized staff to help keep me focused.
: 'If you were president, how would you have handled the coronavirus pandemic differently than President Trump? '
::'Brian Carroll': I would not have entered office by throwing away the playbook for pandemics that Obama left him. I would have acted earlier to order American industry to produce the equipment we needed.
: 'How has the pandemic affected your campaign and your ability to reach out to voters? '
::'Brian Carroll': It has kept me from traveling, and it made it more difficult to collect signatures in states that required that to get on the ballot. It has given me six months at home with my wife, which has been a blessing over what would have been a very hectic six months. I know lots of people who have been stressed by the situations the virus has put them in, but it has been much easier on me.
: 'In 2016, American Solidarity Party presidential nominee received 6,777 votes, largely from write-ins. Based on your general feeling on the ground, how many votes do you expect to receive in the 2020 election?'
::'Brian Carroll': We will certainly outdo that by a factor of ten or twenty. I’m hoping for even more.
Ballot access for Carroll/Patel
: 'What would a Carroll administration look like? Which specific individuals would you ask to be in your cabinet?'
::'Brian Carroll': I'm not going to name individuals that I have never asked. But I would begin by asking my key advisors to submit suggestions, and then I would go to the congressional caucuses that have proven they can work across the aisles, the Problem Solvers Caucus, and ask for their suggestions. I want a Cabinet that can work with Congress.
Members of the Congressional Problem Solvers Caucus, February 2020.
: 'Who would you nominate to the Supreme Court? Would you apply any litmus tests? Should the number of justices remain at nine?'
::'Brian Carroll': I think we in the Pro-life movement have been hoodwinked into supporting judges who were loosely Pro-life but strongly Pro-business. I would de-emphasize business, in favor of workers and consumers.
: 'How will you work with Congress to avoid gridlock and pass your agenda?'
::'Brian Carroll': I’ve already mentioned my Cabinet strategy. I will but out the word that the action is going to be in bipartisanship, and if people want to be at the table, that's where they need to be.
::'Brian Carroll': We are at a triage point. We must reduce carbon dependency. I don’t see how we can do that without taking advantage of Thorium nuclear technology. We need to use solar, wind, and thermal where practical, and explore carbon capture, as well.
: 'What are your views on the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan? What would you do as president to help resolve the conflict and how does that comport with your overarching philosophy on foreign affairs?'
::'Brian Carroll': Diplomacy but not military intervention.
: 'Are you concerned about social media? How would you address this issue as president?
::'Brian Carroll': Social media is still too young to graduate from high school. We're learning, and social media is learning, but the teen years are stressful for any person or organization. They need to be dealt with according to patient persistence. We'll get there.
: 'What can you do, as president, to improve race relations in the United States?'
::'Brian Carroll': First, let it be known that we consider it a priority. A document like the recent Contract with Black America has well over a hundred ideas, most of them good. The idea is that it could be accomplished in the first 100 days, which I think is unrealistic, but there needs to be a visible start from day one.
: 'Election Day is quickly approaching and early voting has already started in some states. What is your final plea to voters?'
::'Brian Carroll': When many voters—or citizens who have given up on voting—are asked what they want, they describe a party that fits our description. This is their chance. The major parties are campaigning on panic. They want to scare voters with visions of life under the other party. The American Solidarity Party is a party of hope. | 1 |
Article 1: The New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) has announced that a shorter version of English known as txt language will be acceptable in the external end of year exams. Txt language is where words are shortened for easier mobile phone usage, e.g. txt is for text, lol is for laugh out loud, brb is for be right back, etc.
Txt language has been approved if the marker can see that the paper "clearly shows the required understanding", however the NZQA still advises not to use it. Bali Haque, deputy chief executive of NZQA, said: "Students should aim to make their answers as clear as possible. Markers involved in assessing NCEA (National Certificate of Educational Achievement) exams are trained professionals, experienced in interpreting the variety of writing styles and language uses encountered during the marking process," Mr Haque is confident that marker will understand txt language.
Educators and students alike are divided saying that it will be easier and others saying it could damage the English language.
Mr Haque said that if the marking schedule said that good language use is needed then txt language will be penalised.
Debbie Te Whaiti, president of the Post-Primary Teachers' Association, said: "The authority's new stance reflected the situation in the classroom. Individual teachers are grappling with txting every day. However, teachers would have concerns if text slang became an acceptable everyday written language in the classroom."
Year 11 student at Avonside Girls High School, Cathy Adank, said: "Most students would be surprised to hear text language was acceptable in some exams. That's great. You'll just be able to get your ideas out quicker. It's so much faster; you can get through the exam faster." But her close friend, Harriet Prebble, disagreed, "I think it's a terrible idea. When you start progressing in the world, people judge you on the written language, and spelling things incorrectly seems sloppy and lazy and gives a bad impression."
However both girls did agree that the use of txt language damages the overall spelling of the users.
Denis Pyatt, principal of Papanui High School, said: "While I would not encourage students to use text abbreviations in exams, I am excited by the language developments. I think text messaging is one of the most exciting things that has happened in a long time. It is another development in that wonderful thing we call the English language. Society has to adapt to change and I think ultimately text messaging could help resolve one of the strangest parts of English, which is its spelling, though I think it will be some time before text spelling is formally adopted."
Lincoln High School NZQA officer, Stephen Rout, said: "I will not be recommending text speak to his students. I would advise students to use proper English rather than text abbreviations. Students need to be able to write and understand full English and I would encourage our students to do that."
Lynda Harris, chief executive of the Write Group who help people develop their English skills, said that her staff are worried "about students being allowed to write in text abbreviations."
This decision comes over a week later when the Scottish Qualifications Authority also allowed txt language. Article 2: A riot in Teheran following the 2009 presidential election.
Protests, riots and violence broke out in several cities in Iran on Saturday night following an election which many in Iran and the world say was fraudulent. Demonstrations took place late into the night, with waves of police fighting protestors in Tehran, Shiraz, Mashad and Rasht.
Protesters chanting "Death to the dictator!" occupied major streets around Tehran, with roadblocks being set up against police. Tear gas has been deployed against protestors in the upscale Valiasr Street district of Tehran as well as at the University of Tehran.
Mir Hossein Mousavi in Zanjan by Mardetanha 0805.jpg|thumb|left|Mir-Hossein Mousavi (right) at an electoral event in Zanjan The protestors are supporters of Mir-Hossein Mousavi, a candidate in the Iranian presidential election. Mousavi accuses the Iranian government of "appalling" fraud after it reported that the nation's current president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who had been expected to receive less than 50% of the vote and have to face Mousavi in a runoff election, received 62%. Addressing officials in an open letter, Mousavi said, "this country has been through a grand Islamic revolution and the least message of this revolution is that our nation is alert and will oppose anyone who aims to seize the power against the law." The protesters, reports say, do not seek to overthrow the Islamic regime, which has been in place in Iran since 1979, but instead to reform it.
In a second letter, Mousavi reported that he has asked Iran's Guardian Council to nullify the electoral result and urged his supporters to wear green, take up the slogan "Allahu akbar" ("God is great") and peacefully protest the official position.
In response, Ahmadinejad celebrated victory in Tehran this afternoon with his supporters, and addressing a largely-sympathetic group of reporters at a press conference, asserted that the election had been free and fair and said
It has been reported that the safety of Ahmadinejad's rivals could not be guaranteed. As a result, many prominent reformists and leaders of the Islamic Iran Participation Front have been arrested. Rumors which spread around the nation saying Mousavi himself had been detained are, however, untrue and the candidate plans to address his supporters later today. However, the brother of former Iranian president and reformist Mohammad Khateimi has been detained. Former president Hashemi Rafsanjani has resigned from all his posts in the government in protest.
125 members of faculty resigned in protest at Sharif University, students and faculty protesting together at the urban Tehran campus, and according to eyewitnesses, police, around 23:00 UTC, raided Teheran University, and arrested over 100 students.
Reporters Without Borders has said that the Iranian government has instituted mass censorship, with foreign journalists being asked to leave the country. It also says an interpreter working with an Italian news crew was beaten by police. Mobile phone services have apparently been cut, and many reformist and social networking websites have been blocked. The Iranian government has also made use of the Internet by circulating a false invitation to a rally outside Mousavi's headquarters; the city square containing the headquarters has been surrounded by police, trapping thousands of Mousavi's supporters inside.
Iranians living abroad as well as supporters of what is being called the "green revolution", from the colors of Mousavi's campaign, have staged demonstrations outside Iranian embassies and consulates in Rome, Kuala Lumpur, Paris, Berlin, London, and The Hague, with events planned in the United States in Chicago, Illinois and Los Angeles, California for later in the day.
Meanwhile, the U.S. does not accept the results of the Iranian election. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that she hopes "genuine will and desire" of the people will reflect the results of the election.
pl:Zamieszki w Iranie po zwycięstwie Ahmadineżada
de:Nach Präsidentenwahl im Iran: Eskalation der Proteste | 0 |
Article 1: File photo of an Air France Airbus A330
Aircraft and water vessels from the French, American, and Brazilian military were searching the Atlantic on Monday after an Air France passenger jet with 228 people on board disappeared over the ocean.
Search teams from Brazil mainly focused on the area north of , an island located approximately two hundred miles off the coast of Brazil. France's military, meanwhile, was several hundred miles away, searching the waters near Cape Verde.
Airplanes from Senegal and Spain have also been sent out to help out in the search effort. French officials have also asked for United States satellite data to help with the search.
"We want to try to reach the last point where the aircraft made contact, which is about 1,200km 745 miles north-east of Natal located in Brazil," said Colonel Jorge Amaral, a spokesman for the Brazil air force.
The intended route of Flight 447.French president Nicolas Sarkozy said he was pessimistic that any survivors would be found.
"This is a catastrophe the likes of which Air France has never seen before. I said the truth to them: the prospects of finding survivors are very low," the president said to reporters at the Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris, France. The Pentagon has also ordered aircraft to assist in finding the plane.
The had departed from Rio de Janeiro on Sunday night, with a dozen crew members and 216 passengers on board, according to a spokeswoman for Air France. The jet was in a normal cruise at 840 kilometres per hour at about 10,700 metres above sea level when it disappeared, almost four hours after having departed. No problems were apparent when the aircraft made its last radar contact.
Air France said that the aeroplane "crossed through a thunderous zone with strong turbulence" at about 23.00 local time (02.14 GMT). Approximately fourteen minutes later, an automated message was sent saying that the cabin had lost its pressurisation and that the electrical system of the aircraft had failed.
If no survivors are found, then this would be the worst aviation disaster since the November 2001 crash. Article 2: An overturned tanker exploded in , South Sudan yesterday, killing dozens.
Motorcycles and a truck on a dirt road in South Sudan. The country has few paved roads.
The death toll is unclear. At least 85 died according to presidential spokesman Ateny Wek Ateny, citing "local authorities". Charles Kisagna of the local government said at least 100 died. County commissioner Wilson Thomas Yanga in remarks to the BBC put the toll at a minimum of 176.
The Red Cross said it had sent two burn kits to local rescuers in Radio Tamazuj spoke to a doctor who reported reserves of painkillers, oxygen, and other consumables were being exhausted.
Some casualties may have fled the scene. Reportedly, after the driver walked away from the crash to seek assistance, local residents began stealing petrol. South Sudan has few paved roads. Mass casualty fuel explosions are common in poor regions of East Africa.
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Article 1: Yesterday, World Bank released its 2012 World Development Report on Gender Equality and Development. India was mentioned over 300 times in the report, many more times than more developed countries like Spain which was mentioned 48 times, New Zealand which was mentioned 15 times, and Canada which was mentioned 22 times.
The report mentions the importance of gender equality for national development as it ties into improve productivity, improved outcomes for the next generation, and more representative decision making. Across the board for India, improved gender equality on the local level led to improvements in sanitation, water supplies, irrigation, and schools.
School girls in Mumbai.jpg|thumb|left|School girls from Mumbai
Nationally, the report found that a woman's income correlated positively with the number of years her children spent in school. There is no gender gap in male/female school attendance for the richest 20% of Indian families, but males outnumber females by a ratio of 5 to 1 for the poorest 20% of Indian families. Girls in the bottom 20% on average only finish Grade 1 while males finish Grade 6. By age 15, according to , Indian parents from Andhra Pradesh prioritize family outcomes for their male children over their female ones.
Indian women earn $0.64 for every $1 earned by their male counterparts. They fare better proportionally than their female German counterparts who earn $0.62 and Georgia who earn $0.60. In the developing world, they lag behind Malawi where women earn $0.90 for every $1 earned by men, Egypt where women earn $0.82, and Benin and Mexico at $0.80. A fifth of married Indian women, including those with their own income, do not make decisions on household spending. The 18% average puts Indian female control of their earnings equal to their counterparts in Mozambique. India is between Nigeria at 14%, and Zambia and Rwanda at 20%.
Female activists from McKay Savage
Indian women are having fewer children. The report found that while it took 100 years for the average woman in the United States to go from having six children to having three, it took India only 35 years. Women still have high maternal mortality rates, especially when compared to neighboring Sri Lanka. India's rate is six times as high. Very young females still die at very high rates in India, especially in obstetric ultrasonography|ultra-sound and similar technologies as a cause for the very high rates in both India and China because it allows parents to select the sex of their child.
In a national exception, the height of North Indian women increased more slowly and they had worse proportional to their male counterparts.
Estimates by the World Bank report writers based on suggest 15% of Indian women think it is acceptable for a husband to beat his wife if she refuses to have sex with him, 20% if she burns food and 30% if she argues with him.
Economic well being plays a role in the number of children a woman has. The richest 20% of women average around 1.5 total children. The poorest 20% average about 4 children. India's poorest 20% is comparable to Colombia and the Dominican Republic. The number is much lower than many Afrian countries including Niger, Mali, Zambia, Malawi, Liberia, Nigeria, Tanzania and Kenya where the poorest 20% average over 7 children.
The Indian gains highlighted include several local ones. This includes using women's self-help groups focused on taking best practices from research and applying them in farming in the state of Orissa. The Self Employed Women’s Association has assisted women in Gujarat by providing childcare. Quotas for women elected in local governments led to changes in underlying beliefs about the effectiveness of women in government. The creation of an all-women's police force in Tamil Nadu led to increased reporting of crimes against women and general comfort in going to the police to report a problem.
The report offers several pieces of advice for Indian policy makers, including trying to change current role models to include more women who do not follow social norms. It advises laws be created and enforced to prevent sex selection of children. The report also encourages strengthening ownership and land rights, which should also address the agricultural productivity gender-gap. Article 2: A file photo of Royal Festival Hall.
On Sunday, the Royal Festival Hall.
The German anti-war film BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay|Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Direction and Best Film.
BAFTA Award for Outstanding British Film|Outstanding British Film and Best Original Screenplay. The film adaptation of BAFTA Award for Best Short Animation|Best British Short Animation award.
The Academy handed the Award for Best Special Visual Effects to .
Meanwhile, Cate Blanchett won Best Actress in a Leading Role for her performance in Austin Butler took the Best Actor in a Leading Role award for Elvis, and BAFTA Rising Star Award|EE Rising Star Award.
The Academy gave costume designer Sandy Powell the for lifetime achievement.
CNN called All Quiet on the Western Front "the sweeping victor of the night". , the movie's producer, said: "We’ve been blessed with so many nominations and winning this is just incredible".
Mackey declared she was "so proud to be nominated" and the win was "really special". | 1 |
Article 1: 'London' – The Woodcraft Folk, a British socialist inspired youth organisation, lost its government subsidy of GBP 52 000. The Department for Education and Skills said the organisation's claim for a grant lacked detail and that they did not have “sufficiently robust outcome indicators”, meaning that it did not represent a “good value for money”. This is the first time in 40 years the group was denied funding by the department.
Loss of the grant puts the future of the organisation in doubt. The grant money provides a fifth of the funds that helps pay for its full-time staff and headquarters. The rest comes from donations, subscriptions and a grant from the Co-operative Group
Some members of Woodcraft Folk have charged that the real reason the funding was stopped is the group's strong support against the Iraq War. It has helped lead some of the anti-war movements.
It now plans to mount a campaign to get the funding back.
The Woodcraft Folk started in 1925 as a socialist and co-operative alternative to the Scouts, who were seen as increasing militaristic in the years immediately after the First World War. Article 2: Typhoon Phanfone made landfall on the central Philippines from Tuesday night through to Wednesday, killing at least 20 according to Philippine officials on Thursday, and leaving reportedly at least 15,000 stranded at ports.
Phanfone impacted upon popular tourist attractions, such as Coron, Palawan|Coron, as well as the . It also blocked roads and forced over 58,000 civilians to evacuate.
Phanfone damaged similar regions to , which killed over 6,000 people in 2013. Cindy Ferrer, head of a regional civil defense office, said "Typhoon Phanfone is like the younger sibling of Haiyan. It’s less destructive, but it followed a similar path". Philippine Red Cross chair Richard Gordon, in remarks to the BBC, said "A lot of people have lost their homes and they need food". He also said many areas lost water and power, and might not get them back for weeks.
Typhoon Phanfone continued westward on Thursday, toward the South China Sea and Asia.
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Article 1: United States President Barack Obama has officially repealed the law prohibiting openly people from serving in the U.S. military. Campaigners have praised the repeal of the "don't ask, don't tell" (DADT) as a historic advance for gay rights.
BarackObamaportrait.jpg|140px|thumb|left|United States President Barack Obama
The new law was signed into effect by Obama yesterday morning. DADT, in effect for 17 years, was repealed by the United States Senate on Saturday. The military will cease enforcement of the policy in 60 days time, after the Pentagon has certified to Congress that it, and the military are ready to implement the new law.
"This is a very good day," Obama told a crowd of soldiers and senior military officials. "This morning I'm proud to sign a law that will bring an end to 'don't ask, don't tell'. No longer will tens of thousands of Americans be asked to live a lie in order to serve the country that they love." Obama added that the government would "not drag their feet" and they were "committed to implementing this change swiftly and efficiently."
He added the law would strengthen national security and the U.S. military. "No longer will our country be denied the service of thousands of patriotic Americans who were forced to leave the military, regardless of their skills, no matter their bravery or their zeal, no matter their years of exemplary performance because they happen to be gay," he said.
Aubrey Sarvis, the executive director of the , praised the new ruling. "Clearly, this is President Obama's Lyndon Johnson moment in history," he said. "A measure of dignity has been restored to thousands of service members on active duty, and to over a million gay veterans who served in silence."
Obama has been an advocate for overturning the ban on gays serving in the military. Under the law, enacted in 1993, over 13,000 members of the U.S. military have been dismissed. Supporters of DADT have said the new ruling will damage the morale of troops. Former Republican presidential candidate John McCain said earlier this month more scrutiny would be needed before the law was repealed.
A report by earlier this month concluded most U.S. service personnel do not believe reform of the rules on gays and lesbians serving in the military would affect morale, unit cohesion or military effectiveness. The report found only 30% believed that changing the law would have a negative effect.
Air Force Lt. Col. Victor Fehrenbach, the highest-ranking officer investigated under the DADT policy, said: "I'm just incredibly proud of our country and of this military that so many service members will be able to serve with dignity and integrity. It's actually taken a day or two to sink in, because it seemed so unbelievable at the time." Article 2: On Monday, Italian midfielder football. A 2006 | 0 |
Article 1: On Tuesday, , the king of Saudi Arabia, signed a royal decree to permit Saudi women to obtain a driver's license and drive. The new decree is to be under effect from June 2018. After the signing of the landmark decree, Saudi's foreign affairs ministry tweeted, .
Saudi Arabia was the only country where women were prohibited from driving. A committee of ministers is to decide upon how to implement this decree, and provide recommendations within a month. A majority of the country's religious advisory Council of Senior Scholars had agreed with the amendments. Though women would be issued driving licenses, their permission to drive would have to be in accordance with the Shari'a law, the scholars said. Also, Saudi Arabia has a law about guardianship, which mandates women seek permission from male guardians before leaving home. The committee would make recommendations about scenarios like this.
Last year, prince issued a statement in support of eradicating this ban. The prince said, "Preventing a woman from driving a car is today an issue of rights similar to the one that forbade her from receiving an education or having an independent identity". He added, "They are all unjust acts by a traditional society, far more restrictive than what is lawfully allowed by the precepts of religion." The prince also cited economic concerns. In his statement, he said families had to rely on drivers when a female member had to travel, which could be avoided if women were allowed to drive. He said, "Having women drive has become an urgent social demand predicated upon current economic circumstances".
Women to drive movement |advocated rights for women to drive, tweeted, "Today, the last country on earth to allow women to drive #Women2Drive#Daring2Drive we did it", after the announcement was made. Women who protested against the unequal rights in 1990 and 2011 were punished, in various cases jailed and banned from travel for years.
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In the early hours of Monday, a woman was killed and five others were injured when a gunman opened fire on Irma Street in Dorchester, Boston, Massachusetts, US. Reports to first came in at 12:29 a.m. Upon arrival to the scene, police discovered the woman and pronounced her dead at the scene.
Homicide detectives placed markers on the sidewalk to mark evidence in the investigation, and police used yellow crime scene tape to block off Irma Street and several other locations to prevent others from tampering with the investigation. The five people who were injured are currently recovering at local hospitals. Three of the five injured transported themselves to the hospitals, while the other two were escorted to hospitals by Boston EMS.
On Tuesday, the deceased woman was identified as 38-year-old Aisha Shepard, who lived in Roxbury. The Boston Police Department is also working on this case as it unfolds. The Boston Neighborhood Trauma Team is also providing 24/7 service and assistance for anyone needing emotional support during this challenging time. | 0 |
Article 1: The meteorite and its crack in the floor.
Scientists confirmed on Thursday an approximately 2.2-pound rock that fell on a home in Hopewell Township, New Jersey, United States May 8 was a meteorite, estimating its age at 4.56 billion years.
Suzy Kop brought the meteorite to electron microscope.
Early analysis suggested the rock is an LL6 Eta Aquariids meteor shower. However, Sky & Telescope concluded this was not the case after analyzing the meteorite's path.
Kop noticed the warm black rock on her father's bedroom floor about 12:30 PM (). She found two holes in the ceiling, which scientists determined the meteorite created when it impacted the house at high speed and bounced off the floor. Kop contacted the police, who sent a hazmat team, which determined the rock was not dangerously radioactive.
The impact did not injure anyone. Article 2: The sample return capsule on Sunday.
Yesterday, a capsule from NASA's Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification and Security – Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) spacecraft containing samples from the asteroid arrived in the US city of Houston, Texas. The capsule was en route to the (JSC) after landing in the the day before. This was NASA's first asteroid sample return.
As of Sunday, the capsule was in a nitrogen purge, in which nitrogen is pumped into a container, maintaining the samples' purity from Earth's atmosphere's contamination of them. Staff are to later take apart the container, catalog its contents, and eventually provide samples to scientists in other institutions.
NASA Administrator congratulated the OSIRIS-REx team "on a picture-perfect mission — the first American asteroid sample return in history — which will deepen our understanding of the origin of our solar system and its formation." Nelson also said the samples will lead to better understanding of asteroids that could head for Earth.
OSIRIS-REx launched in September 2016 and arrived at Bennu in December 2018. For almost two years, NASA scientists worked to select the best sample collection site. The spacecraft collected samples in October 2020 as it used a robotic arm to make contact with the surface and then inject nitrogen gas to kick up material into its receptacle. About 8.8 ounces of the approximately six metric tons of debris entered the receptacle. OSIRIS-REx began its return trip to Earth in May 2021.
The sample capsule was dropped at an altitude of 63,000 miles as the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft flew by Earth. It entered the atmosphere at 10:42 (1442 UTC) and touched down about ten minutes later. Recovery teams used radar and other instruments to track the capsule. Personnel secured the capsule to ready its transport to JSC.
Since its launch in 2016, OSIRIS-REx has traveled 3.86 billion miles. With the sample-return phase complete, the spacecraft will continue on to the asteroid . To reflect the change in purpose, the mission has been renamed to Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-APophis EXplorer (OSIRIS-APEX).
OSIRIS-REx Artist’s conception (square crop).jpg|thumb|An artist's impression of OSIRIS-REx at Bennu.
BennuAsteroid.jpg|thumb|101955 Bennu. | 1 |
Article 1: Four civilians driving southwest of Kabul were killed after a landmine exploded underneath their car. The head of criminal investigation in the Kabul police force, Ali Shah Paktiawal issued the following statement on the matter: "It was an old landmine that exploded in the Char Asiab District this morning and killed four people. It was not a roadside bomb or a recently planted mine."
There are over 100,000 unexploded landmines in Afghanistan, planted in recent and older conflicts by the Soviet military and the Taliban. An average of sixty people a month are killed by mines. Article 2: President George W. Bush addresses the participants at the Secretary of State’s dinner Monday evening, November 26.
Senior officials from nearly 50 countries and international organizations have gathered in Annapolis, Maryland near Washington, D.C. for a conference aimed at launching final-status peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. The meeting, the product of months of Middle East diplomacy by the Bush administration, is intended to reopen peace talks between the two sides for the first time in seven years.
The conference, hosted by the United States Department of State, has been dubbed the Annapolis Conference. "Our purpose here in Annapolis is not to conclude an agreement. Rather, it is to launch negotiations between the Israelis and Palestinians," said President George W. Bush at the first formal session of the conference. "The time is right, the cause is just, and with hard effort, I know they can succeed."
Bush said that direct negotiations for a Palestinian state will begin December 12. "Such a state will provide Palestinians with the chance to lead lives of freedom, purpose and dignity," Bush said. He hopes a solution be found before he leaves office.
As the summit got underway, thousands of people demonstrated in Gaza City. "Let them go to a thousand conferences, we say in the name of the Palestinian people that we did not authorise anyone to sign any agreement that harms our rights," said Mahmoud al-Zahar, a co-founder of Hamas. Mahmoud Abbas has no right to make concessions to the Israelis he said. "Abbas is a traitor" and "Death to Israel, death to America," the crowd chanted.
Scene at one of the meetings of the Annapolis Conference on November 27.
The Prime Minster of Israel, Ehud Olmert said: "This time it's different because we are going to have lots of participants in what I hope will launch a serious process of negotiations between us and the Palestinians."
Mahmoud Abbas, President of the Palestinian National Authority said: "We have a great deal of hope that this conference will produce... expanded negotiations over all permanent-status issues that would lead to a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinian people."
Observers have noted that the summit has attracted the participation of Saudi Arabia and Syria—two Arab states that do not recognize Israel—and say that this is critical to chances for success.
The conference began informally last night with a dinner hosted by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. "We've come together this week because we share a common goal: two democratic states—Israel and Palestine—living side by side in peace and security," Bush said in an address to the participants. "I'm encouraged by the presence of so many here. Achieving this goal requires the commitment of the international community, including the United States," he continued.
es:Comienza conferencia de paz para Medio Oriente en Annapolis, EEUU
it:USA: al via ad Annapolis la conferenza di pace per il Medio Oriente | 0 |
Article 1: Matthews started producing turkey eggs in 1950
Bernard Matthews, founder of the turkey company of the same name, has died at the age of 80. His death was announced by Noel Bartram, the group chief executive of the company.
Matthews started Bernard Matthews Farms Ltd. in 1950 when he invested in a small number of turkey eggs and a used incubator. Within two years he had turned his production into full time and was producing 3,000 turkey eggs.
Bartram released a statement on Matthews death. He said "It is with a great deal of personal sadness that I confirm Bernard Matthews passed away on the afternoon of the 25th November. I have personally known Bernard Matthews for well over 30 years, and on behalf of myself and my fellow colleagues, I wish to express our great sorrow and extend our thoughts and sympathies to the family." Matthews died on the US holiday of Thanksgiving, also known as "Turkey Day".
He steped down as director in January of this year on his 80th birthday following a few hard years for the company. Chef bird flu was found at one of his farms. Following the outbreak sales dropped and staff were cut. Article 2: File photo of Neil Manson.
Voters in the Scottish Airdrie and Shotts (UK Parliament constituency)|Airdrie and Shotts are to go to the polls on May 13 to elect a replacement member of parliament (MP) to the United Kingdom House of Commons.
The outgoing MP for the seat is Airdrie and Shotts (UK Parliament constituency)|2019 general election|anchor=Elections in the 2010s, winning 13.1% more than the second placed candidate Helen McFarlane of the Scottish Labour party, who received 32.0% of the votes.
One of the eight candidates running in this constituency is Neil Manson, the Scottish regional chair of the Social Democratic Party (SDP). The SDP website claims Manson has "enjoyed a varied career working across international markets in both the manufacturing industry and energy sector", and Manson joined the SDP in 2019 after reading the party's New Declaration, which outlines the party's principles.
Wikinews spoke to Manson about important issues facing Airdrie and Shotts in this by-election.
To be honest it's been a difficult task to lead the country through the pandemic, and I don't think there's any doubt mistakes have been made by both the Westminster and Holyrood Governments but being overly critical doesn't help. We as a party supported the first lockdown|anchor=First national lockdown, but since then have been sceptical of the ongoing Stop-Go approach which didn't suppress the virus and has only served to undermine peoples liberties, and risked causing a prolonged economic depression and negative impact on society.
'What do you think needs to be done to improve transport services in the Airdrie and Shotts constituency?'
Our primary policy pledge for transport is to nationalise the rail system, and in the first instance to assert greater control over bus services, particularly an increase in funding support for regional and rural bus travel.
'Do you support the idea of a second independence referendum?'
No. The constitution is a reserved matter and the UK Parliament agreed to a referendum which resulted in the decision of the Scottish people to remain in the the United Kingdom. Any change would need to first be discussed and agreed at Westminster.
Climate March Sep 2014 (68) (15309944451).jpg|thumb|Climate change protestors in Edinburgh, Scotland, 2014.
'Do you think the Conservative government is doing enough to combat climate change?'
Environmental issues suffer from too much talk and not enough action under the current (and previous) governments. Whilst the SDP will honour and comply with our global environmental obligations, we would look to implement sustainable changes by encouraging behavioral changes within industry and society as a whole.
'The SNP describes themselves as social democratic. Where are some primary areas of difference between your party and theirs?'
Firstly, we'd disagree that the SNP are social democrats, they're populists. The SDP are actually social democrats in our every day thinking, beliefs and policies - and not just at election time. We're also patriotic, and believe in a strong Scotland within a strong United Kingdom for the benefit of all its citizens.
'Do you agree with your party's policy that an should be established?'
Yes, I believe this policy can assist in healing many of the divisions we see across the UK, ending the perception of the UK Parliament as an English parliament with Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland under its rule. This multi-tiered approach dissolves accountability, fosters a culture of apathy and creates a vacuum where parties like the SNP thrive.
'What does mean to you?'
The SDP seeks the common good in Britain's national interest. We represent neither capital nor labour, not private industry nor the public sector, but only the welfare of the British people and residents of these islands. We seek a path where all the constituent elements of our society can grow and prosper. We believe in a Social Market Economy where pro-public sector and pro-market policy can beneficially coexist within a balanced programme – provided each inhabits its correct domain, and neither is allowed to distort our country's economy in the service of ideology.
Airdrie Leisure Centre.
'What is a local issue that you think isn't being addressed that should be?'
I have concerns over the long term plans for our sports and leisure facilities in our local towns and communities throughout the constituency. Many are potentially at risk due to continuing Scottish Government funding cuts to council budgets and access for people of all ages to these facilities to improve our physical and mental health is vital, even more so now to ensure our recovery from COVID-19|Covid-19.
'If you're elected, what's one thing you'd like to change about the law?'
I'd support the repeal of the much-maligned SNP Hate Crime and Public Order Act, which threatens to criminalise speech on a range of issues if it is thought to be 'hateful'. We feel the bill is ambiguous and lacks sufficient safeguards, even after a recent campaign found that 87 per cent of Scots hold free speech to be an 'important right'. The Hate Crime Bill also raises issues over the erosion of sex-based rights. Within the SDP Transgender and Biological Sex-based Rights policy, we state that it is our belief that biological sex is real, and pledge to support the use of plain English for discussions of biological sex in health and reproductive care.
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Article 1: Canadian Pacific Railway locomotives - stock photo by Sylvan Mably
Twenty-four cars of a west-bound Canada Pacific train were thrown from the tracks after the train collided with a semi tractor-trailer in poor weather and visibility near Regina, Saskatchewan around 11 a.m. Tuesday morning. The driver was rushed to hospital.
The accident took place on a level section of Highway 46 just north of Highway 1, about 25 kilometres east of Regina. The RCMP spokesperson reported the crossing is marked with lights, but weather may have played a role.
"Road conditions were wet and sloppy and it's foggy," RCMP Cpl. Brian Jones said to the CBC. The bad weather, including a heavy overnight snowfall, may have contributed to the accident.
Most of the 93 cars in the train were empty bulk transit cars, used for moving agricultural products such as grains. The RCMP report that neither train or truck were transporting any hazardous materials. Article 2: According to varying reports, at least eighteen people were killed and at least 20 were injured in a suicide attack at Fateh Pur shrine in district, located in Pakistan's western province of Balochistan on Thursday.
Devotees had gathered at the shrine, built in honour of Saint Pir Rakhel Shah, for the annual anniversary ritual. A policeman reportedly stopped the attacker at the gate of shrine before the attacker detonated the bomb. Local official Asad Kakar said, "Suicide bomber struck outside the shrine at the time it was packed with people". The militant group Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant claimed responsibility for the attack via the .
There have been several other attacks on Sufi shrines. In February, about 80 people were killed in a suicide attack in Sehwan Sharif|Sehwan, a town in Sindh province. About 50 people were killed in another attack on the shrine of Shah Noorani, located in Hub, Balochistan, on November 12, 2016. ISIL claimed responsibility for both.
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Article 1: According to Wikinews' German language version, Jimmy Wales, founder of the Wikimedia Foundation, is the winner of this year's Inventor prize.
The award is given out on Inventor's Day, which Germany celebrates on November 9. Wales' novel, open approach to Wikipedia was cited as the reason for giving the award. A ceremony to hand over the award will be arranged for the next time Wales visits Germany. Article 2: Zimmerman after being arrested in 2012.
George Zimmerman, a Florida man charged with the shooting of seventeen-year-old Trayvon Martin, was found not guilty of second-degree murder late Saturday night following 16 hours of deliberation. The case has drawn national attention in the United States because of questions it raises over "stand your ground" self-defense laws.
Zimmerman shot Trayvon Martin on February 26, 2012. Prosecutors argued that Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch captain, had pursued Martin on the basis of race, as Martin walked through Zimmerman's on the way back from a convenience store. Zimmerman's lawyers argued Martin attacked Zimmerman who then shot Martin in self-defense after Martin punched him and repeatedly slammed Zimmerman's head against the sidewalk.
Following the decision to acquit, by a six member all-female jury, of both a second-degree murder and a manslaughter charge, Zimmerman's lawyer said: "I think the prosecution of George Zimmerman was disgraceful". On Twitter, Zimmerman's brother Robert said the decision made him "proud to be an American".
Tracy Martin, Trayvon's father, posted on Twitter to say "Even though I am broken hearted my faith is unshattered". Jahvaris Fulton, Trayvon Martin's brother, posted "Et tu, America?", alluding to the Shakespearean phrase ""
The civil rights charges against Zimmerman. NAACP president | 0 |
Article 1: Italian journalist, Giuliana Sgrena, who was hit by American artillery fire after being rescued from kidnappers in Iraq, was released from the hospital Thursday. Her injuries, more serious than initially reported, were caused by a projectile that burst her shoulder open and punctured her lungs. She suffers with fluid build-up in her lungs to this day and was unable to leave her home to participate in news interviews.
Sgrena told an independent reporter, Naomi Klein, in a report yesterday (Friday, 3/26/2005) on the Pacifica Radio Network broadcast called "Democracy Now with Amy Goodman," that they were not on a high security airport road which the Americans had claimed. There were no "checkpoints" — they had already passed through them in the Green Zone. Sgrena stressed this as being very important to this story, and little reported upon in the U.S.
She said they received permission from security officials to use a little known, but very secure, road that was near to their airport destination. This road had no roadside bombs — it is not open to the public and has absolutely no military checkpoints. Access to the road was gained by first passing through the American-held security territory called the "Green Zone". Located in the heart of Baghdad, the zone is probably the only partly secure area of the entire country, according to Sgrena. They had their headlights on for easy identification while they traveled, and were in mobile phone contact with Italian security officials.
Ms. Sgrena asks why a tank would fire high velocity munitions at a small vehicle with permission to cross on such a secure road with absolutely no other traffic? What would the motive be to have her killed? It is known that the anti-artillery munitions were 4 inch long armor-plate penetrating rounds, which could explain her severe injury and the death of her body guard.
Her tragedy and the death of Nicola Calipari have been very detrimental to Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's public opinion, particularly regarding his participation in the U.S. invasion of Iraq. She had just been released from a horrible sequence of events beginning with her kidnapping and imprisonment in a small room. She did not know "night from day for an entire month." She feared the house she was in might come under fire from American helicopter gunships. She could hear them overhead at all hours of the day and night.
She was told by her kidnappers that "Americans did not want her to get out alive," which she dismissed at the time as a threat from the kidnappers. She also said the statement by the kidnappers had an eerie overtone to it, since she knew that Bush didn't want any independent journalists to carry tales out of the killing zones, or to talk to everyday Iraqis.
According to Sgrena, she was placed in the back seat of the escape vehicle with the head of Italy's Foreign Military Intelligence, Nicola Calipari, after her release. He was killed during the attack when he shielded Sgrena from bullets by jumping across her body. The shooting was done by heavy artillery on top of the attacking tank, not a simple machine gun. They fired at Sgrena from behind — hardly a situation where the car could be a threat to the tank. When the driver, Giulian, climbed out of the shot-up car, he was in touch with his superiors in Italy — and Ms. Sgrena says he was telling them they had been taking intense gunfire, "300 to 400 shots." The Americans aimed guns at him and told him to hang up immediately.
Klein, the reporter with this story, stated the American press has not reported any of this. Nor have they given the American people any idea of the seriousness of the injuries to Sgrena. Sgrena also questioned why the US Army was not aware of her release from kidnapping, as all of the major news wires had reported it prior to the shooting incident.
Late Thursday, Italian Justice minister, Roberto Castelli, contacted American officials for permission allowing Italian police access to the escape car, a Toyota Corolla which was rented from the Baghdad airport. Americans have previously only permitted Italian authorities access to photographs of the car, and have not stated when they will allow the Italians to have access to the vehicle.
Recently Mr. Berlusconi has begun to backpedal on his statement that Italian troops would be out of the war zone by September. He now claims he never said that, and Italians won't leave Iraq until it can police itself. Article 2: Pakistan's parliament dissolved itself at midnight Thursday to make way for a new caretaker government to oversee January elections. VOA's Barry Newhouse reports from Islamabad that while President Pervez Musharraf tries to make the elections appear credible despite emergency rule, his opponents are busy uniting against him.
Senate chairman and member of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League (PML-Q), Muhammad Mian Soomro, was appointed by Musharraf as interim Prime Minister. The rest of the cabinet will be announced later, though local television said that Musharraf loyalists had been chosen. Opposition leaders said that the January elections will not be free and fair.
Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz addressed a final cabinet meeting late Thursday before the new caretaker government takes office Friday. State television broadcast footage of Aziz praising officials for their accomplishments.
"We have promoted press freedom and freedom of expression. No government has been more tolerant that ours in hearing criticism," Aziz said.
Pervez Musharraf says he wants to be a civilian president
The claims of progress by the close ally of General Musharraf stood in stark contrast to political opposition leaders, who say security forces continue to pursue the president's critics.
Ahsan Iqbal is a spokesman for the political party of exiled former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. He spoke to VOA by telephone.
"After elections were announced, they should have put an end to all these arrests of opposition leaders," said Iqbal. "But they are still hounding us; they are still searching for us. I am in a hideout. The entire leadership of the Pakistan Muslim League (N) (PML-N) is either in jail or in detention or they are in hiding. So how can there be fair and free elections in the country."
"We totally reject it. This appointment, in fact, is part of General Musharraf's scheme to perpetuate his rule," said Mushahidullah Khan, also of PML-N.
While the government crackdown is succeeding in preventing mass protests, its success is unifying political opposition leaders.
Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto has confirmed that she has spoken with Mr. Sharif about forming a broad coalition to challenge General Musharraf.
Benazir Bhutto says she would prefer a broad coalition to be the interim government.
"I think that we the leaders of political parties need to exchange ideas of what could be a possible agenda for all of us to rally around," she said.
Ms. Bhutto made the comments in a phone interview with Dawn News, an independent television news broadcaster that returned to local airwaves Thursday for the first time since emergency rule was imposed November 3.
United States diplomat, Brian Hunt visited with Bhutto in Lahore. Afterwards he told reporters, "I conveyed to the former prime minister the continuing U.S. government concerns about the state of emergency." He called for detainees to be freed, even as authorities arrested more Bhutto supporters at protests in various cities.
Musharraf has recently said that he intends to step down as the Chief of Army Staff and be sworn in as a civilian president, as soon as the Supreme Court of Pakistan dismisses challenges to his re-election.
Dawn and a few other stations have agreed to abide by a new code of conduct that bars news coverage that directly criticizes the president, the army or the judiciary. Criticism of the president's policies is allowed.
News anchors and hosts can face heavy financial penalties and up to three years in prison if any part of their shows is considered in violation of the law. Most political reporters for the networks have not returned to work. | 0 |
Article 1: The results of a survey by the UK TV station UKTV Gold has revealed the 10 most stupid laws, as determined by the 4,000 participants. It is unclear as to how many of the laws are true, or still in effect but at least one has been determined as being a myth. The ten laws are listed below.
#It is illegal to die in the Houses of Parliament. 27%
#It is an act of treason to place a postage stamp bearing the British monarch upside-down. 7%
#In Liverpool, it is illegal for a woman to be topless except as a clerk in a tropical fish store. 6%
#Mince pies cannot be eaten on Christmas Day. 5%
#In Scotland, if someone knocks on your door and requires the use of your toilet, you must let them enter. 4%
#A pregnant woman can legally relieve herself anywhere she wants, including in a policeman's helmet. 4%
#The head of any dead whale found on the British coast automatically becomes the property of the king, and the tail of the queen. 3.5%
#It is illegal to avoid telling the tax man anything you do not want him to know, but legal not to tell him information you do not mind him knowing. 3%
#It is illegal to enter the Houses of Parliament in a suit of armour. 3%
#In the city of York it is legal to murder a Scotsman within the ancient city walls, but only if he is carrying a bow and arrow. 2%
At least some of the items on the list have been confirmed as urban legends. A spokesman for Liverpool City Council commenting on the third item stated "It's something that has been heard of before and does crop up from time to time, but it is absurd... It is a myth and totally made up. It has no basis in fact". Article 2: British comedy actor Chris Langham has won an appeal to have the sentence reduced in his conviction for downloading indecent images of children from the internet. Originally sentenced to 10 months in prison, Langham's sentence has now been cut to 6 months, and he is set to be released today.
Langham, 58, had been found guilty on 15 counts for downloading child pornography. Police claimed that several images found on Langham's computer were of the worst category, "Level 5" severity. However, Langham claimed that he was using the images for researching a character in a TV series called Help. Dame Heather Steel, one of Britain's most senior female judges agreed that the sentence could be cut.
Langham was arrested in 2005. During his original trial, Langham was found not guilty of indecently assaulting an underage girl. He had appealed his sentence previously, but was rejected in October 2006. | 1 |
Article 1: Ambulances responding to the London bombings. Today an officer was cleared for the second time of defrauding the Metropolitan Police while investigating the attacks.
A judge cleared a police detective today of fraud relating to money intended for use investigating the London bombings in 2005. Detective Sergeant Peter Allbut was accused of keeping £9,200 set aside to accommodate officers sent to Leeds during the probe.
American Express card to withdraw funds to pay rent bills after the cost of hotels was deemed excessive. Allbut was alleged to have on three occasions between February and May 2007 to have siphoned funds into his personal bank account. Allbut denied three counts of fraud relating to £2,200, £4,000 and £3,000.
After today's conclusion of the prosecution case Judge Geoffrey Rivlin QC ruled there was insufficient evidence against the officer and ordered the jury to find him not guilty. It is the second time Allbut has been cleared of criminal financial dealings in the course of his duties with the Metropolitan Police's Counter Terrorism Command.
In July Allbut and a fellow Detective Seargent, Nevill Caldecourt, were tried over allegations they had purposely overcharged for flat rentals on expenses. Both were found not guilty of conspiracy to defraud and . Last month another counterterrorism officer with the force was convicted alongside his wife on a similar case in which he overcharged his employers for apartments. Detective Constable Daren Pooley and his wife Nicola were convicted of conspiracy to defraud for running the scheme while deployed to Leeds after the London bombings.
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Sippy Downs, Queensland|Sippy Downs, Queensland, Australia — University has defeated UTC+10|local time today (0518 ).
Having been out played for most of the game, Fraser Coast scored three tries to University's two in the final 20 minutes. This effort came despite the team trailing 60 points to nil. They scored their first try on 4:30pm (6:30am UTC). Their second came three minutes later. University would score a try at 4:41pm. Again, three minutes later, Fraser Coast scored a try.
University finished the match with an intercept try right on full time. The final score — University 70 (twelve tries, five conversions), Fraser Coast 19 (three tries, two conversions). In other games, Nambour hosted in Woombye and Maroochydore, Queensland|Maroochydore in Sunshine Beach. | 0 |
Article 1: As reported by state-run Chinese newspaper North Korean defectors|North Korean defector has been captured by law enforcement after a 42-day-long chase following his escape from prison. Going by the Chinese name Zhu Xianjian, the 39 year-old man had been arrested for illegal entry into China, theft, and larceny. His deportation back to North Korea from Jilin Province was scheduled to take place in 2023, after his sentence ended.
Jilin Province on a map of China.
Images and video of the capture were released alongside the report, showing Zhu being carried into a police car by law enforcement, near the lakeside house where he was apprehended. According to a video released by the Renminbi|yuan (31,284 USD) bounty had been instituted for any tips or information that could lead to the defector's capture, Business Insider reported. Zhu had escaped from Jilin prison on October 18, after climbing on a storage shed and leaping off a wall.
Zhu had escaped from North Korea in July 2013, after swimming across the Tumen river, which acts as a natural border between North Korea and China. Prior to his escape, Zhu had been living as a coal miner in North Korea.
North Korean defectors face imprisonment and possible torture if caught in China. A bilateral border agreement signed in 1986 between China and North Korea warrants the deportation of all Korean defectors caught by Chinese authorities back to North Korea. Article 2: Coolum claimed the premiership in the top tier of women's cricket on Australia's Sunshine Coast Sunday, defeating Hinterland by 83 runs in the Grand Final.
Batting first, Coolum scored 181 runs for the loss of 3 wickets off their allotted 30 overs.
Interview with Coolum captain Sammy Franks.
Interview with Hinterland captain and SCCA Women's committee chair Mel Shelley.
Batting after Coolum, Hinterland scored 98 runs for the loss of 8 wickets.
Coolum captain Sammy Franks said: "The girls played so well today. 181 with the bat, that's pretty solid ... We knew we had to put a lot of runs on the board. Aiming for 140, 150. But yeah. 181, that was wonderful."
Two senior Coolum players, Kerry Cowling and Paula McKie, retired after the match.
Franks continued, "It was great to win. Give Kezza and Paula a final farewell. Yeah, Paula is retiring as well. It was a little bit of a secret. She's moving on to bigger and better things. We'll miss her. She was obviously vice captain, and cricket brain and always there for me.
"Kerry's done so much for the club. All the little things that didn't get seen. Cleaning the toilets, bringing the sausages, just organising the whole team, all of the admin stuff and just being there like a cricket mum to us," she said. | 0 |
Article 1: Caleb Uriah Lussier, 20, a student at Word of Life Bible Institute, has been arrested and charged with two felony counts of third degree burglary and one count of felony third degree arson of Christ Episcopal Church in Pottersville, New York, on May 30th, after first collecting and placing the bibles out of reach of the fire.
Warren County Sheriff Larry Cleveland said Lussier confessed to the burning the church, saying Lussier Christ Church had deviated from the Bible and the word of God.
Police reported that Mr. Lussier confessed to stealing from the church twice in May and he described to authorities how he used gas to set the fire itself. He allegedly also confessed to sending threatening letters to a church in Plymouth, and setting a fire to the New Testament Church in his hometown in December, 2005.
Authorities were put onto Mr. Lussier's trail by way of a tip from a congregant from another community church who reported that Mr. Lussier looked out of place when he attended services. At that point Mr. Lussier had no police record and a connection had not been made between the Pottersville church arson case and the Plymouth church fire where, similarly, a bag of Bibles had been previously saved from the arson.
Mr. Lussier is currently in Warren County jail on a $250,000 cash bail or a $500,000 bond. He is scheduled to appear back in court later this month.
Christ Episcopal Church serves a parish of about 15 people.
Word of Life is a large evangelical fundamentalist youth ministry with major campuses in Schroom Lake, NY, Florida, and California, and smaller campuses in 46 countries. Article 2: An unknown person or persons wrote graffiti and vandalized the exterior of homes belonging to six members of the United States congressional delegation from the state of Minnesota late last Monday night or early Tuesday morning.
According to the Star Tribune, Laurie Coleman, wife of U.S. Senator Norm Coleman, found the words "U R A CRIMINAL, RESIGN OR ELSE! PSALM 2" written on the family's garage. The word "SCUM" was also written in three places on another side of the garage. Psalm 2 is a biblical reference.
The homes of senator Amy Klobuchar, and U.S. representatives Michele Bachmann, Keith Ellison, John Kline and Jim Ramstad were also targeted by vandals. Ellison's house was the only one that sustained damage.
Peter Panos, St. Paul Police spokesman, told the Star Tribune that threatening message in the graffiti were cause for concern.
"We're looking at this as an actual threat," he told the Star Tribune. "We're taking it quite seriously. Vandalism threats are pretty rare in this city."
Bachmann, Coleman, Kline and Ramstad are Republicans. Klobuchar and Ellison are Democrats. All live in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul metropolitan area. Reps. Collin Peterson and Jim Oberstar, who live in out state Minnesota, along with Rep. Betty McCollum — who lives in a condominium, did not receive vandalism to their homes.
Senate candidates Al Franken and Dean Barkley, who are running against Coleman in the November elections, condemned the vandalism.
"There's no place for this unacceptable behavior in our political process, or in our communities," Franken's campaign told the St. Paul Pioneer Press. The paper said that the Franken campaign office was the victim of graffiti attacks including the words "Crazy" and "No New Taxes."
Federal and local authorities are still investigating these incidents, as well as similar incidents that took place in Missouri.
Over the weekend, a Minnesota hair salon was targeted. Police say it may have been a copycat vandal, though the salon is said to be patronized by Norm Coleman. | 1 |
Article 1: The CCTV image used as evidence in court. The tattoo is shown on the neck.
A thief in Bristol, United Kingdom, has been prosecuted due to incriminating evidence in the form of a tattoo on his neck with his name and date of birth that was captured by police CCTV, when he was in the process of stealing a Satellite navigation system in a car planted by police to find criminals.
Aarron Evans, the thief, today pleaded guilty to charges of theft at Bristol Magistrates' Court. He is aged 21 and he is illiterate and has no fixed address.
The sentence was for seven months imprisonment.
Ian Wylie, who is police superintendent for the Bristol district commented on the incident. "Criminals won't be tolerated in Bristol and we will keep catching them and bringing them before the courts," he said. "We get such excellent images from these cameras that there is often, and never more so than in this case, no doubt who the criminal is and what they are doing. When faced with such evidence, there is no other way to go than 'guilty'."
"The photographs don't just lead us to the person breaking into the car either. Further police work has also led us on many occasions to the handlers of the stolen property and people the car criminal is working with. We have also received information from members of the public through Crimestoppers where they have reported stolen property being sold on the streets, door-to-door or in local pubs," Wylie continued. "The covert car has been a magnificent asset to the teams working to reduce car crime happening and those arresting car criminals. "
"We will continue to play our part but members of the public can still help us in reducing the opportunity for thieves; don't leave valuables on display in your vehicle and, better still; take them out of the car completely." Article 2: Japan's nuclear watchdog, the Nuclear Regulation Authority, yesterday said the revealed leaking of an estimated 300 metric tons of radioactive water at the damaged Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant was a "serious incident", level three on the seven-part international scale.
A diagram marking the various points of the power plant where accidents occurred in the wake of the 2011 tsunami.
Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), who run the plant, announced the leak last week and the new accident's level-three rating was made after consultation with the International Atomic Energy Agency. However, the Nuclear Regulation Authority notes this estimate may be overstated as it relies on the leaking tank being full before the leak began.
There is no gauge to measure water quantities inside the tank, used to store contaminated water after the initial accident. Water is being collected at a rate of 400 tons per day, and an unknown quantity of radioactive groundwater is flowing into the sea.
Industry minister whack-a-mole". Nuclear Regulation Authority disaster taskforce leader Shinji Kinjo has said TEPCO fails to document inspections and is poor at monitoring the tanks on the site. TEPCO staff had said water levels in the tank had remained constant.
Shunichi Tanaka, head of the Nuclear Regulation Authority, said "We have no idea whether it's actually 300 tons that leaked. We need to look into this issue more." TEPCO initially said the leak was small when it was found in July and the watchdog gave it a level one "anomaly" rating at the time. Inspectors now say radiation below this tank stands at 100 per hour, and another at the facility has a level of 70 millisieverts per hour.
"One hundred millisieverts per hour is equivalent to the limit for accumulated exposure over five years for nuclear workers; so it can be said that we found a radiation level strong enough to give someone a five-year dose of radiation within one hour," said TEPCO boss Masayuki Ono last week. TEPCO shares dropped yesterday by 2.6% to 497 yen.
sr:Фукушима: Истицање радиоактивне воде озбиљан а не блажи инцидент | 0 |
Article 1: The PM and Quebec premier Jean Charest have announced a $1 billion highway development in Montreal. This project would be one of Canada's largest ever public private partnerships. It will be a 35 kilometer (21.8 mile) four-lane toll road Highway 30 project, in Montreal.
"It opens up a new horizon in Quebec's economic development," Stephen Harper said in a speech in Lery, Quebec. "As prime minister of Canada I am very proud and welcome this latest example of the fruitful collaboration between our government and that of Quebec."
The Montreal Skyline
"Since we formed the government of Canada, I have wanted to practice an open federalism, inspired by the spirit which gave birth to the Canadian confederation," said Harper. "That includes respecting provincial jurisdictions and the sharing of responsibilities."
"You know that open federalism is not a constitutional theory or an electoral slogan," the prime minister added. "It's a new approach that allows partners in the Canadian federation to work better together in the realization of projects."
Completing the highway will allow through traffic to bypass Montreal, reducing traffic congestion and air pollution in the area.
"The announcement today speaks to the willingness of both governments to work together to better serve the interests of the population," said Charest, who is expected to head into an election next year.
Bank of Canada Governor David Dodge and other public officials have endorsed agreements between governments and private companies to invest in roads and hospitals.
fr:Canada : Stephen Harper et Jean Charest annoncent la phase finale des travaux de l'autoroute 30 Article 2: Bell Canada Enterprises (BCE)'s most recent bid to buy Canadian dollar|CAD$3.4 billion has been approved on Thursday by the (CRTC), the Canadian regulatory body which supervises broadcasting and telecommunications.
The CRTC rejected BCE's initial bid for Astral in October, citing concerns over market competition. According to Jean-Pierre Blais, Chairman of the CRTC, BCE's most recent bid protects Canadians' interests because BCE will have to invest in new Canadian programming to the tune of $246.9 million in addition to selling almost two dozen of Astral's services.
The CRTC said they will also be imposing a number of competitive safeguards. For example, BCE is required to adhere to certain sections of the CRTC's code of conduct for commercial arrangements, the purpose of which is to limit potential behaviour which would stifle competition as well as to treat independent programming services and distributors fairly. It must also provide to its competitors "reasonable access" to advertising opportunities on its radio stations.
When the deal is completed, BCE's share of the English-language and French-language market will grow to 35.8% and 22.6%, respectively. BCE will be required to keep running all of its local TV stations while maintaining their current levels of local programming.
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Article 1: Chess legend Fischer leaves detention in Japan
Former world chess champion Bobby Fischer will move from Japan to his new home of Iceland despite requests from the USA for his deportation to the US. Mr Fischer had been held in Japan since last July when he was arrested on what US officials claimed was an invalid US passport. He was freed from detention on March 23 after 9 months in confinement.
Mr Fischer is wanted in the USA for violating Executive Order 12810, signed by then-President George H. W. Bush in 1992. EO 12810 placed sanctions on the former Yugoslavia, where Mr Fischer played a chess match in 1992 against Boris Spassky. If Mr Fischer had been sent to the US, he would have faced a ten year prison term. The U.S. revoked his passport in 2003 and Mr Fischer was later arrested at Narita Airport while trying to leave Japan en route to the Philippines.
Following an appeal by Mr Fischer's supporters, the parliament of Iceland granted Mr Fischer an Icelandic passport on Monday. Mr Fischer won the world championship in Reykjavik, Iceland in 1972, against Mr Spassky, then of the Soviet Union, and Mr Fischer remains popular among Icelanders. (Mr Spassky became a French citizen in 1978). The 1992 rematch was billed as as being for the "World Championship", although by then most chess fans recognized Garry Kasparov as the world's #1 player.
Iceland's ambassador to Japan, Thordur Oskarsson, said that the US government had sent a message of displeasure to the Icelandic government before its parliament passed the bill allowing for Mr Fischer's citizenship. Mr Oskarsson went on to say that, "Despite the message, the decision was put through Parliament on humanitarian grounds".
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Incumbent President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, has claimed victory by winning 89% of the vote in the recent Azerbaijani presidential election, which were boycotted by all major opposition parties.
The major opposition parties boycotted the election due to claims that the government was limiting people's democratic rights and restricting freedom of the press. These parties described the elections as nothing more than a charade.
"Despite the boycott by some opposition parties, the Azeris made their choice in favour of Ilham Aliyev," said Ali Akhmedov, a press spokesperson for Aliyev's New Azerbaijan Party.
Aliyev faced six opponents in a presidential election. None of these competitors were considered a serious competitor by the newly re-elected president.
Isa Gambar, leader of the Musavat party, which was the main opposition party until it entered the boycott, commented on the result. "It's a farce, a tragicomedy," he stated. "The authorities were trying to force people to vote."
Authorities state that there was a 78% turnout in the election.
At 15:00 UTC today, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) criticized the election, but said that progress had been made. The organisation said in a press release that "yesterday's presidential election in Azerbaijan marked considerable progress, but did not meet all of the country's international commitments."
"The election was conducted in a peaceful manner, but was characterized by a lack of robust competition and vibrant political discourse facilitated by the media, and thus did not reflect all principles of a meaningful and pluralistic democratic election," continued the OSCE. "Regrettably, some opposition parties boycotted the election, citing longstanding obstacles. This further limited the scope for meaningful choice for the electorate." | 1 |
Article 1: Tomorrow will be an historic day in the Republic of Ireland. It will be exactly one year since the initial introduction of the once controversial . The ban, introduced on March 29 2004, made Ireland the first country in world to completely ban smoking in all workplaces.
The idea was initially met with much skepticism by the Irish who traditionally had a worldwide image as a land of drinkers and smokers. However despite this early uncertainty, the ban has been a huge success. Cigarettes sales have fallen by as much as 60% in Pubs, with the country's biggest tobacco brand, Gallaher, reporting an overall drop in sales of 7.5%.
The Bertie Ahern announced earlier this month that over 7,000 had given up smoking in the past twelve months. A survey by the showed 82% supported the ban. Anti-smoking lobby groups such as ASH had been calling for a ban for many years prior to the Government's initiative.
On 3 December 2003, New Zealand passed the Scottish Parliament|Parliament hopes to have a ban in effect by early 2006. Article 2: According to officials, the Somali security minister, Omar Hashi Aden, was killed after a suicide car bomb detonated near a hotel in Beledweyne, located north of the Somalia's capital of Mogadishu.
At least nine other people are believed to have been killed in the explosion. Among the dead was Abdulkarim Ibrahim Lakanyo, a former ambassador to Ethiopia.
The country's president, Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, blamed the attacks on the radical Islamist al-Shabaab militant group, which is believed to have links with al-Qaeda. Al-Shabaab later did claim responsibility for the incident.
"I am sending condolences to the family of the Security Minister Omar Hashi who was killed in an explosion in Baladwayne," Ahmed said. | 0 |
Article 1: VIPs and Panelists From left to right: Chi Cheng, Jongher Yang, Yoshiro Hatano, Luc Henau, Ron Sutton, and Min-yu Wu.
Before the "Taiwan Walking Day", Sports Affairs Council of Executive Yuan (SAC Taiwan) held "2007 Master forum on Walking" at Da-Hsin Campus of Chinese Culture University today. This forum invited walking experts from Japan, Belgium, and USA to share experiences on promotion of walking. Chi Cheng, spokeswoman of Taiwan Walking Day, thanked SAC Taiwan for the promotion of public sports especially walking, and she appealed forum participants integrating sports into people's life to keep in healthy.
At the keynotes, Luc Henau, former president of International Marching League Walking Association (IMLWA), focused on the relationship between soul, spirit, society, and body. He pointed out the importance on walking, participation structure between different ages, and effective on social and neighborhood interactions by glancing the history of the IMLWA.
In the part of "Mr. Pedometer" W. Ron Sutton, he explained some successful cases of pedometer counting in their life and described some advances of walking. Finally, Japanese "10,000 steps a day" expert Yoshiro Hatano analyzed some statistics to emphasize the importance between health and sports. "Some cardiovascular diseases were originated with bad habits, nutrition problems, and doing less sports." Hatano said.
After the speech, Min-yu Wu (General Manager of Taiwan Post Co., Ltd.) and Jongher Yang (Commissioner of SAC Taiwan) announced the release of "2007 Walking Stamp", and awarded "2007 Recreation Sports Stamp" to the panelists (Henau, Sutton, and Hatano) for the end of this forum. Article 2: left
IAAF World Championships in Athletics|World Championships in Moscow, Russia last night. Dibaba finished with a time of 30 minutes and 43.37 seconds, giving her the third World Championship victory of her career.
Dibaba’s victory last night ended a six-year drought for the athlete on the World Championships stage, having been unable to win a World Championship title since 2007. In that period of time, Dibaba had more luck in the Olympics, winning the 10,000 meter final in 2008 and successfully defending her title in 2012.
Dibaba waited until the final two laps of the race to take the lead, sprinting the final 500 meters in 59.98 seconds. She easily left her fellow competitors behind, with silver-medalist Belaynesh Olijra|Belaynesh Olijra of Ethiopia, one of Dibaba’s training partners, took the bronze medal, crossing the finish line in a time of 30 minutes and 46.98 seconds.
Dibaba spoke about wanting to return the Ethiopian women’s track team to glory, when talking to reporters after her race. The team had not won gold at a 10,000 meter final at the IAAF World Championships for two years.
"Because of that, both as a team and individually, we trained very hard," she told reporters.
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Article 1: Citing a lack of results from the primary autopsy by the Los Angeles (LA) Coroner's Office of Michael Jackson's body, the Jackson family has requested that an independent coroner examine the body in hopes of finding the cause of death.
Michael Jackson in 1988
The LA Coroner's have ruled out foul play, but the toxicological tests could take as long as 6 weeks, and as of now have not specified the reason for Jackson's death. The Coroner's officer has stated though the decision for an independent autopsy was surprising, they didn't have any issues with allowing it.
The Jackson family has been unable to contact Michael Jackson's personal physician, Conrad Murray, who was with the star during his final hours. Police have stated that Dr. Murray is not a suspect, but they are attempting to set up an interview.
Reverend Jesse Jackson, an American civil rights activist and Baptist minister, has been in contact with the family and has been providing counseling. He stated "they the Jacksons didn't know the doctor...He should have met with the family, given them comfort on the last hours of their son." An associate of Ed Chernoff, Dr. Murray's lawyer, stated that "contrary to what has been out there, Dr. Murray has been co-operating with authorities from the outset and will continue to do so." Article 2: At midnight local time (0700 UTC), United States public utility (PG&E) began turning off electricity for customers in the San Francisco area of California. PG&E stated it scheduled the blackouts in response to forecasts for high winds amid dry conditions. The aim is to reduce the risk of wildfires. Nearly 800 thousand customers were scheduled to be affected by the shutoffs which were expected to last through at least midday tomorrow.
Logo of
Within the first four hours 185 thousand customers were without power. According to PG&E's schedule, by noon today over half a million could be affected, at which point phase two was planned to begin. Phase two was planned to affect over two hundred thousand customers. A phase three was tentatively planned, but final decisions were not yet made.
PG&E announced the schedule in a press release late yesterday and followed it up with a press conference last night. Sumeet Singh, a vice president at PG&E, said "We very much understand the inconvenience and difficulties such a power outage would cause". Company meteorologist Evan Duffey said, "This is forecast to be the strongest offshore wind event since October 2017".
Senior vice president Michael Lewis added, "The safety of our customers and the communities we serve is our most important responsibility, which is why PG&E has decided to turn power off to customers during this widespread, severe wind event. We understand the effects this event will have on our customers and appreciate the public's patience as we do what is necessary to keep our communities safe and reduce the risk of wildfire".
According to local news, school districts across the area announced school closings. PG&E announced via Twitter around 11:30 am (1830 UTC), phase one had been completed. The company apologized for its website being inaccessible due to high volume of traffic. | 1 |
Article 1: British Armed Forces personnel on parade at Wembley Stadium
The United Kingdom's first Armed Forces Day is set to get underway later today. Previously called Veteran's Day, it was changed by the government in an effort to raise awareness and understanding. The day is meant for the public to show their appreciation to the armed forces of the UK, their families and veterans.
Her Majesty the Queen sent a message to all British servicemen to thank them for their contributions and the risks they take. Major celebrations are due to be held around the country, in cities including Leeds, Glasgow, Manchester and Plymouth.
Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth said the day should be "a celebration of the armed forces in all of their glory, not just what they do while they're in service". During his first trip to Afghanistan he went on to say that young soldiers said that, "They were telling me at that time that they didn't tend to talk about what they had been up to because people weren't interested. I just thought that that was so depressing. Now you can see lots of organisations - small businesses, large businesses, communities - trying to show their appreciation. And it is just phenomenally important. It's a huge improvement on the situation that was existing a couple of years ago." Article 2: Queen Elizabeth on August 10.
Yesterday, Elizabeth II officially surpassed her great-great-grandmother Victoria, to become the longest-serving monarch of the United Kingdom.
Victoria was queen for much of the 19th century, with a grand total of 23,226 days, 16 hours, and 23 minutes. However, the precise moment in time when Elizabeth reached her milestone remains a mystery because it isn't known for certain exactly what time the Queen's father and predecessor, George VI, passed away.
The milestone was the subject of widespread praise from around the world including Commonwealth of Nations, of which Elizabeth is ceremonial head. British Prime Minister David Cameron said that her reign was "truly humbling" and had been a "golden thread" for British society in the post-war era. He was joined by members of both the House of Commons and the House of Lords.
The occasion was also marked in London by a flotilla proceeding down the River Thames. Buckingham Palace unveiled photographs taken by Paul McCartney|Sir Paul, in which the Queen was sitting in the room where she meets the Prime Minister on a weekly basis.
However, the Queen was not present in London because she is currently on holiday in Scotland. She appeared to underplay the significance of the day, only briefly mentioning it whilst attending the opening of a restored railway line in the region.
Accompanied by her husband, Prince Philip, and Nicola Sturgeon, the First Minister of Scotland, she met crowds of admirers who had turned out in force to welcome her. The First Minister emphasised the Queen's "dedication, wisdom and exemplary sense of public service". | 1 |
Article 1: Thailand's People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) announced a planned rally this coming Monday at the national stadium and march to police headquarters in protest at action taken against demonstrators last Tuesday. Tuesday's protest, where attempts were made to block MPs access to and from parliament, turned ugly when police employed tear gas and other measures to disperse the PAD crowd. Two protesters died, over four hundred were injured, and reports indicate that as many as ten may be missing. The ongoing protests and demonstrations are aimed at toppling the governing People's Power Party (PPP) who are accused of being a proxy for deposed prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra's outlawed Thai Rak Thai party.
Friday saw the remaining seven PAD protest leaders surrender to police and be issued on bail. Leaders Chamlong Srimuang and Chaiwat Sinuwong were also bailed, having been arrested and detained earlier. This follows the charges of treason being thrown out by the country's appeals court; lesser charges, including inciting unrest, still stand.
The activist political group, founded by media firebrand Sondhi Limthongkul has occupied Government house for some time now, their demands are for a revision of the Thai political landscape which would see professionals and those in the more prosperous parts of the country a bigger say in the government. Outstanding charges of corruption against Thaksin Shinawatra who the military removed from power in September 2007 are the result of Sondhi and the PAD's long-standing battle against what they view as vote-buying populist policies. Questionable land deals and allegations of neoptism saw an increasing number of people becoming involved in protests prior to the 2007 coup.
The ongoing crisis has impacted the country both domestically and internationally. The deputy prime minister, Chavalit Yongchaiyudh resigned on Friday for his part in ordering the police into action against protesters blockading parliament. In an interview with the Bangkok Post, the former general implied the solution - once again - lies with the army, and suggested a second coup may be the only solution to the crisis. Army chief, Anupong Paochinda, faced scorn from the PAD following his dismissal of the call for a second coup; this despite his issuing harsh criticism of the current administration.
On the international front, Thailand's troubles saw the Prime Minister, Somchai Wongsawat, cancel a number of foreign visits. The beleaguered PM had planned to visit five ASEAN partner countries in a tour that would have started next week. Additional trips to Laos, Cambodia, and Myanmar (formerly Burma) were cancelled. According to a member of the PPP this is due to the current unrest.
Adding to the woes of the ruling PPP, the Attorney General's office has asked for a ruling from the country's Constitutional Court outlawing the People's Power Party. Office spokesman, Thanapit Mulpruek, outlined the content of the petition specifying that the key 37 leaders of the PPP should have their voting rights revoked for five years in light of the allegations of election fraud, or knowingly allowing such to continue. The party's former deputy leader was disqualified during the December 2007 general election, being accused of graft. The party's members of parliament are scheduled to meet Monday to discuss this issue and the ongoing political crisis. Article 2: File photo of Cimex lectularius, the bed bug.
At the meeting of the , (NCSU) researchers lead by Coby Schal and Ed Vargo presented preliminary research on the genetic diversity of populations of . Their DNA analysis showed the diversity is low within a single building. The researchers discovered that the bugs can inbreed and evolve at the same time.
A part of the research included extensive DNA analysis of genetics of bed bugs in different apartments. The diversity was lower than it would be for a population of most other species. Coby Schal said, "We kept discovering the same thing. Within a given apartment, or even a given building, there was extremely low genetic diversity. In most cases there's just a single female that founded the population."
Another NCSU anthologist Zachary Adelman, not one of the researchers, said that the fact of different strains of bedbugs in the United States east coast "means they're coming into the country from lots of different places".
The discovery shows that pesticides are ineffective if they don't eliminate the entire population. Just a few survivors can produce a new generation within the house or building quickly; and, as the offspring of those surviving pesticide use, pass on their genetic resistance; emphasising Schal's remark that, "the insecticides really need to be robust".
Coby Schal said that for most species, limited diversity causes generic disorders and population does not survive, thus making the discovery a surprise. He said, "But somehow bedbugs are able to withstand the effects of inbreeding, and do quite well." Schal was suggesting that as cockroaches inbreed successfully as well, its success may be related to the species' reliance on humans to relocate from place to place. The research is at preliminary stage, meaning the scientists may carry out more analysis before a final release. | 0 |
Article 1: The financial leaders pose for a group photo.
In the midst of the intensifying global financial crisis, finance ministers and central bankers of the G7 nations – Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United States, and the United Kingdom – met in Washington, D.C. and released a joint statement.
With failures of large financial institutions in the United States, the crisis rapidly evolved into a global crisis resulting in bank failures in Europe and the Americas, and sharp reductions in the value of stocks and commodities worldwide. The crisis further lead to a liquidity problem and the de-leveraging of world assets, which further accelerated the problem. The crisis has roots in the subprime mortgage crisis and is an acute phase of the financial crisis of 2007–2008.
After the meeting, a joint statement was released with a commitment to "stabilize financial markets and restore the flow of credit." The statement outlined five steps to achieve these goals:
#Take decisive action and use all available tools to support systemically important financial institutions and prevent their failure.
#Take all necessary steps to unfreeze credit and money markets and ensure that banks and other financial institutions have broad access to liquidity and funding.
#Ensure that our banks and other major financial intermediaries, as needed, can raise capital from public as well as private sources, in sufficient amounts to re-establish confidence and permit them to continue lending to households and businesses.
#Ensure that our respective national deposit insurance and guarantee programs are robust and consistent so that our retail depositors will continue to have confidence in the safety of their deposits.
#Take action, where appropriate, to restart the secondary markets for mortgages and other securitized assets. Accurate valuation and transparent disclosure of assets and consistent implementation of high quality accounting standards are necessary.
"Central banks from around the world have acted together to provide additional liquidity for financial institutions, taking the necessary steps to support the global economy," said US Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson in a statement after the meeting.
"We have taken a lot of actions," said European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet. "My experience of markets is that it always takes a little time to capture the elements of the decisions taken."
The Governor of the Bank of England Mervyn King said: "Central banks will work together as we demonstrated this week, to ensure sufficient short term liquidity is provided to stabilise banking systems. But it is also vital that governments work together to ensure their banking systems are recapitalised to enable them to lend to finance spending in the real economy." Article 2: Invincible returns to the Solent.jpg|thumb|left|HMS Invincible served in the Falklands, Balkans, and Iraq wars before it was decommissioned in 2005.
The British warship HMS Invincible has been put up for auction online. Invincible, an Falklands War|Falklands, Balkans, and Iraq wars, was decommissioned in 2005 after 25 years of service with the Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)|MoD for non-warlike purposes." No bids have yet been received, but it is thought that it could sell for £2m.
During service, the vessel's four Rolls-Royce engines could propel it to a top speed of 28 knots, with a range of 7,000 nautical miles. The flight deck carried eighteen Westland Sea King helicopters. In recent years, however, she has been reduced to reserve. Rosamond said: "Even if someone did want to take it on as a going concern it would never be used as an aircraft carrier again."
The MoD held a decommissioning service for the vessel in in , Hampshire, in August 2005. "Pipers played aboard Invincible while it sailed into Portsmouth Naval Base on 1 August for the last time. A gun salute and a flypast also marked the event," Wikinews reported at the time. Bids for the ship must be submitted by early January next year. Naval consultant Richard Scott said that the vessel "certainly carved her name out in history in 1982. But every ship reaches the end of its career and she is at the end of hers."
fr:Insolite : un porte-avions britannique aux enchères | 1 |
Article 1: News spread in the Red Lake community today as funerals for Jeff Weise and three of the nine victims were held that another student was arrested in connection with the school shootings of March 21. Authorities said little officially beyond confirming today's arrest. However, a source with knowledge of the investigation told the Minneapolis Star-Tribune that it was Louis Jourdain, 16-year old son of Red Lake Tribal Chairman Floyd Jourdain. It is not known at this time what charges will be laid or what led authorities to the boy but juvenile proceedings have begun in federal court.
Last Tuesday, investigators had said that Weise had acted alone and his motives were unknown though he suffered from depression and expressed interest in Nazism.
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File photo of site of shooting.
His lawyers had reportedly set up a drive to collect donations for the defendant. His sister made public requests for assistance in raising funds for her brother's bail. Shortly after Rittenhouse's release, one of his lawyers posted a photo to Twitter showing him and actor standing next to each other and smiling.
A resident of Antioch, Illinois, Rittenhouse is accused of crossing state lines and shooting and killing two people who were participating in demonstrations protesting the intentional homicide and . If convicted, Rittenhouse could receive up to a lifetime prison sentence.
Rittenhouse was not old enough to own or possess a firearm in the state of Illinois at the time of the incident. He claimed to have obtained his weapon by having an older friend purchase it on his behalf using stimulus money Rittenhouse received from the state during the coronavirus lockdown. A suspect in Wisconsin has been charged for allegedly providing the weapon to Rittenhouse.
Rittenhouse turned himself in to authorities on the morning following the shooting, and his lawyers have claimed the defendant acted in . Court Commissioner Loren Keating said he considered Rittenhouse a flight risk, prior to setting the US$2 million bond.
Rittenhouse, in remarks to The Washington Post, contended he would have died had he not been armed that night. Some conservative groups have come to Rittenhouse's defense regarding the incident.
Suspeito de assassinar manifestantes em Wisconsin libertado sob fiança de US$ 2 milhões | 0 |
Article 1: Boeing 737-400 similar to the one involved in the incident.
A Batavia Air Boeing 737-400 has landed safely after a segment of wing up to two metres in size separated from the aircraft 15 minutes after takeoff on a domestic flight between Jakarta, Indonesia and Pontianak late on Wednesday night.
Batavia spokesman Anton Situmeang commented that the aircraft, which was carrying 138 passengers and six crew, could have continued to its destination without the part, but had returned for an emergency landing as a precaution. He went on to say that the plane's last major service was only a month or two ago, and consequently Batavia have launched their own independent investigation.
Indonesia's National Transport Safety Committee senior investigator Frans Wenas told reporters that the missing part had been located close to the airport. News website Detik.com is quoted by the International Herarld Tribune as saying that the piece struck a house, but there are no reports of injuries on the ground.
Deregulation of the Indonesian airline industry in the 1990s has resulted in the startup of many new budget carriers, including Batavia Air. However, industry analysists have raised concerns that deregulation has resulted in lax safety standards and poor industry supervision. Indonesia is now trying to address the concerns ahead of an EU review of the decision to add all Indonesian airlines to the list of air carriers banned in the EU. Article 2: A documentary broadcast on Sunday on the UK's Channel 4 claims the RMS Titanic was weakened by a three-week fire before its infamous 1912 sinking.
The wrecked bow of RMS Titanic
More than 1,500 people died when the vessel sank partway between , England and New York, United States. The disaster has long been thought down to a collision with an iceberg.
Titanic: The New Evidence focuses upon research by Irish journalist Senan Molony, who spent 30 years investigating the accident. Based on photographs of RMS Titanic at the shipyard that built it in , Ireland, he suggested fire by spotting large black streaks in the region struck by the iceberg.
The documentary claims expert analysis confirmed these streaks likely signify a large fire in a fuel store. Alleging temperatures of up to 1,000 degrees Celsius, Molony said metallurgists had opined "when you get that level of temperature against steel it makes it brittle, and reduces its strength by up to 75 per cent."
Molony claims "This isn't a simple story of colliding with an iceberg and sinking. It's a perfect storm of extraordinary factors coming together: fire, ice and criminal negligence.... The fire was known about, but it was played down. She should never have been put to sea." He said J Bruce Ismay, President of the firm behind construction of RMS Titanic, ordered the twelve men tasked to attempting to control the fire to avoid informing passengers. Molony also claims the ship backed into its Southampton berth in a bid to hide fire damage.
A 1912 report to the UK Parliament mentioned, but dismissed as a cause, the on-board fire. Ray Boston suggested in 2008 fire may have broken out ten days prior to departure. Boston investigated the disaster for twenty years. Richard De Kerbrech, who wrote several books documenting the accident, said Molony's proposal the fire severely weakened the ship's structure is believable.
Molony said "Nobody has investigated these marks before or dwelled upon them." The photographs, taken by engineers on the ship, only recently came to light when they were sold at auction.
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Article 1: Two polls in the last 24 hours have shown the gap closing in the US Mid term elections. A month ago Gallup had the Democrats 23% ahead in a generic ballot, and now it is 7% amongst registered voters and 4% amongst likely voters.
Up to 100 million Americans go to the polls tomorrow to decide control of Congress in the last two years of George W. Bush's presidency.
With both parties focused now on turning out voters. Bush campaigned in marginal Republican districts in conservative states while the top congressional Democrat campaigned in the left-leaning Northeast.
"Here's the way I see it," Bush told a crowd in Nebraska. "If the Democrats are so good about being the party of the opposition, let's just keep them in the opposition."
Republicans and Democrats have sent out thousands of volunteers in the closest states to work phone banks and canvass neighbourhoods. Both parties also have assembled legal teams for possible challenges.
Republicans repeated their assertion that Democrats would raise taxes and prematurely pull out of Iraq if they controlled Congress.
Iraq has dominated the campaign, and Republicans and Democrats sparred again after Saddam Hussein's conviction and death sentence for crimes against humanity.
"To pull out, to withdraw from this war is losing. The Democrats appear to be content with losing," said Senator Elizabeth Dole, who leads the Senate Republican campaign. Article 2: Salil Ankola, who was one of the celebrities participating in the reality TV-show Bigg Boss, which is said to be an adopted version of the Big Brother series from the UK; had to leave the house of Bigg Boss following a ruling from the High Court of Maharashtra.
Ankola's trouble began when Balaji Telefilms Ltd., dragged him to the court for appearing in a rival production house. He had signed up a contract with this production house in the month of August, and was expected to abide by the contract for the next 12 months. However, he shot through the months of September and October and did not show up in November. The High Court ordered that until the arbitration in this matter is pending, the actor cannot act, endorse, advertise or do voice-overs for production houses that compete with Balaji. | 0 |
Article 1: Television star Air America Radio Network starting April 1. He says the new deal will not affect his popular television program, which will continue to be produced.
After initially being carried by only 45 stations nationwide, the host of the long-running syndicated program, will eventually have his radio show heard on all 51 Air America affiliates. The show also is planned to be broadcast by the Sirius and XM satellite radio services.
Springer said he is committed to making his radio show a success. "Progressive, populist voices need to be a part of our nation's dialogue," Springer said in a press release. "I hope I can make a contribution."
Although best-known for his low-budget, tongue-in-cheek talk show, Springer does have a political pedigree. He was a Democrat mayor of Cincinnati in 1977 and made a failed bid for governor of Ohio in 1982. Article 2: London, England— Yesterday, following a three–nil loss to the Australia's national goalball team.
Tyan Taylor, APC publicity shot
The sport was created in 1946, exclusively for people with a visual disability and, designed to help with the rehabilitation of veterans returning from . Play in the Paralympics consists of two twelve-minute periods, with a three minute break between halves. Players are blindfolded to ensure all are equally visually handicapped on-court; and, the game can be stopped to ensure goggles are properly fitted. Standing in front of a long goal, they throw the ball at the opposition team's net who in turn try to block it by listening to the ball, which contains a bell, and using their bodies to prevent the ball from going in. The audience is asked to remain silent during play.
Australia went into their match against the US having lost 1–3 to both Canada. They have one game left to play at the London Paralympics against , who have lost 1–5 to the United States, tied Japan 0–0 and beaten Canada 2–1.
You guys weren't expecting to qualify. The APC has been developing you the team, for Rio. Are you happy with the fact? Do you feel prepared for Rio?
::'Tyan Taylor:' Yes, the APC's, for us, planned development for Rio. That's what they have as the goal, to make us qualify for Rio. So it was a bit of a spanner in the works when we qualified for London; but, it's been a massive experience here for us and we have stepped up from qualifying in Sydney in November to where we are now, to God know where we're going to be for Rio. We are all pumped and excited for our team just to keep developing.
Two of you were dating, or involved with, men on the national team. Were they here to watch you?
::'TT:' Yes! We've got some of our Aussie men as supporters in the crowd. Meica's husband and Nicole's husband as well. And we have our first mate Robbie, he's also part of the men's team. They've been with us and they've been supporting us since pretty much the start, so we're doing it on behalf of them as well.
I know that some of your players look shattered, but do you guys feel the importance? You're the first Australian team to actually qualify on your own to enter the goalball programme.
::'TT:' Yeah! I mean, some team members tried qualifying for Beijing, unfortunately we were unsuccessful. So, I think, some of us having only played the sport for three years and to qualify for London is just a massive achievement. We are grabbing every opportunity that we can, and putting everything on the table for each game.
Are you going to try playing more international competitions, so you don't have that big lag like you did last time?
::'TT:' Hopefully, we get more international competitions, exposure - I suppose - with that, but we've grown so much with the little amount of international exposure we've had so I think we're going to take it and roll with that.
You're going to get a medal in Rio?
::'TT:' Hopefully we'll medal! We always look for the medals but you never know what is going to happen, so…
Are you enjoying your time here?
::'TT:' Yes! Absolutely loving it! Awesome! The crowd are just insane! It's great. We are all having an absolute awesome time.
Do you have anything else you'd like to share with with us?
Like the mismatched yellow and green socks as a fashion statement?
::'TT:' Yeah! Yellow and green socks are… Meica in our team started that fashion. So we thought we'd all. The green and the gold.
On a strategy thing, the US team stood up most of the time, but do you intentionally play differently, or is it just a style preference?
::'TT:' For some people it's a style preference. For some… I guess it's more of a style preference. We all stand up between penalties but each to their own really in competitions like this.
It's exceptionally fun to watch, having never seen this sport before. Thank you very much.
::'TT:' That's alright!
Good luck with Rio!
::'TT:' Thank you very much. | 0 |
Article 1: A federal jury found Bernard Ebbers guilty of all nine counts in the indictment brought against him. The verdict was handed down by a New York jury after 8 days of deliberation on the former WorldCom CEO and mastermind behind the accounting scandal that brought down the telcom giant.
AP writer Erin McClam reports, "Ebbers' face reddened.", as the verdict was read. Sentencing is set for June 13 when he will face up to 85 years in prison.
Ebbers testified in his own defence, saying he left the details of the company's accounting to others and that he had no knowledge of shady practices. But Scott Sullivan, ex-chief financial officer and key prosecution witness, directly linked Ebbers to the fraud. He had agreed to co-operate with prosecutors in the hopes of receiving a lenient sentence for his own involvement in the fraud.
The demise of WordCom sparked a massive class action law suit by investors. The drastic plunge of WorldCom's stock value cost upwards to $11 billion as the scandal unravelled. Secuities fraud case filings stemming from the suits will probably break new legal ground whereby the actions of investment banks and public accounting firms will be called into legal question. Article 2: Two members of a news crew for Roanoke, Virginia station were shot and killed on live television this morning. The suspect, a former reporter for the news station, later shot himself after a manhunt of several hours, authorities said.
Reporter Alison Parker, 24, and cameraman Adam Ward, 27, were conducting an interview at a local outdoor shopping mall when a gunman opened fire at approximately 6:45 AM local time (1045 ). Around fifteen shots were reported fired. Parker and Ward were killed, while the interviewee, Vicki Gardner, was transported to hospital and underwent surgery for her injuries, later listed in stable condition.
The gunman, later identified as 41 year-old Vester Lee Flanagan II, fled the scene. A brief police chase ensued several hours later when law enforcement attempted unsuccessfully to pull Flanagan over on Fauquier County, Virginia|Fauquier County. Shortly after, Flanagan pulled off the road and shot himself. He was pronounced dead at a Fairfax-area hospital around 1:30 PM local time (1730 UTC).
Flanagan, who reported under the alias "Bryce Williams", was fired by the station in 2013. According to WDBJ president and general manager Jeffrey Marks, speaking to , Flanagan was "an unhappy man" and "difficult to work with". "Eventually after many incidents of his anger coming to the fore, we dismissed him. He did not take that well".
A video of the shooting, which appeared to have been captured from the point of view of the shooter, was posted on Bryce Williams' Twitter and Facebook pages several hours afterwards.
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